Between The Stars
by Gemkat5
Summary: Please see the summary within the story-it's too long to squeeze here. I originally rated this M, but it's only T so I changed the rating, and it's already wrote out in it's entirety, which is six chapters total. J/S of course. Enjoy! Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: The only thing I claim to own is the insane idea that formed this story. Everything else is borrowed**.

**Summary:** Through accidental encounters and coincidental meetings Sarah discovers that behind the title of Goblin King there is a man who is fascinating and seductive, but is that enough to warm her indifferent heart? Jareth's love for Sarah is reborn, growing stronger each time they meet. But a mistake was made during their first encounter that changed Sarah forever. Can Jareth mend the damage done? Or will Sarah keep her heart Between the Stars…

**A/N:** A while back a friend of mine asked me to write a Labyrinth romance story: Where Sarah and Jareth are not in love, but learn to love each other. Here's my attempt to fulfill her request. I hope everyone in the kingdom enjoys!

**Between The Stars**

**Chapter One**

**October - Halloween Ball – Location Unknown**

Sarah Williams found herself becoming excited as she got out of her car. There was just something in the air for this year's Halloween, something… magical. Making sure she had her keys, cell phone, and lipstick for touch ups in her small drawstring purse, she locked and closed the car door. Pulling her shawl tighter around her bare shoulders, she carefully stepped around the front of the vehicle to join Frank, her current live-in boyfriend.

"I can't believe how many people are here," she commented, glancing at the full parking lot, and then, at the stream of people dressed in various costumes filing into the old theatre house.

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Frank remarked sullenly. "I feel fucking ridiculous."

Sarah smiled warmly at him, taking hold of his hand as they approached the end of the line to get inside. "I think you look fantastic," she beamed up at him, giving him a promising look when he returned her gaze.

"Now, see? That's exactly the look you used to talk me into this," he quipped, trying to sound perturbed, but failed. He could never stay mad at Sarah for long. She had such an innocent quality to her sometimes that made you feel like a million bucks just to have her look at you. "But, c'mon babe, tights? I mean, really," he commented cynically.

"You had no qualms about being Robin Hood when you first saw me in this gown," she quipped with a small laugh.

"That was before I knew about the tights," he admitted, leaning closer to her so the people around them wouldn't hear about his discomfort.

"Ahh, but you carry your sword very well, Sir Robin," she taunted with a gleam in her eyes, and a mischievous smile on her lips.

Frank pulled back to his full height to look at her. "That I do, Maid Marian," he adlibbed with his own mischievousness. "And, I know how to use it, too."

"Of that, I am certain, Sir," she responded, bringing a blush to her cheeks. He leaned over her and kissed her cheek, both of them laughing at their own antics.

"I love how you role play, you know that?" Frank asked, his tone full of fondness.

"You're not so bad, yourself," she complimented. "Once I get you started, that is."

"Good Evening," the vampiric doorman greeted pleasantly, holding out his hand for their tickets. "Robin of Locksley, and Maid Marian, I presume."

"Yes, my lord," Sarah replied, curtsying slightly with a smile. God she missed this, she really, really missed this!

The doorman laughed heartily, "Brava, my Lady," he beamed. "Not everyone is as enthused as you are." He handed Frank their ticket stubs. "Hold onto these for the mix match, and consolation prize drawing later in the evening," he told Frank, who nodded and handed them to Sarah to put in her purse. "I hope you both have a great time tonight."

"Thank you," Sarah and Frank replied, then stepped past the doorman to follow the red velvet ropes to the interior.

"Ooh," a woman dressed as a Victorian Lady voiced with appreciation as she walked past the newly arrived couple. "Robin Hood, I admire your… sword, Sire."

"Heh… uhm… thank you," Frank replied, feeling flustered at the woman's blatant stare at his groin. He stepped closer behind Sarah as she took in all the costumes and ambiance of the spacious theatre turned ball room. "You know, maybe the tights aren't such a bad thing after all."

"I told you," Sarah sing sung with a knowing smile. "Let's get some refreshments before starting to dance."

"After you," Frank stated agreeably.

XxXxX

"I'll meet you inside," Jareth informed his companion stiffly, as she paused at the end of an obnoxiously long line of mortals just to enter the place.

"Jareth," Selina breathed exasperated. "It's no fun if you don't go through the motions. Now, please, wait with me."

"I spend more hours simply waiting than I'd like to think about," he replied curtly. "There is no point to this if it can be avoided."

"You were the one who invited me to this function, may I remind you," she replied smugly. "And, I would have you enter as everyone else."

Jareth took a heavy breath, resigning himself to remain, waiting, in a line of humanity. He had regretted asking Salina to accompany him to this function as soon as the words had left his mouth. She had immediately gone off treating the event as though it were a formal affair of the Underground. His only consolation was that he had successfully talked her out of actually wearing mortal costumes, Robin Hood and Maid Marian, no less. He cringed inwardly at the thought.

"This is so very exciting, don't you think?" Salina asked Jareth with exuberant enthusiasm. "I haven't attended one of these in such a long time!" she glanced over at Jareth, stepping closer so she wasn't overheard by prying ears. "Do you think they still have beheadings?"

"Highly unlikely," Jareth replied dryly. "That custom has been banned for quite some time here."

"Oh," she murmured with a pout. "How disappointing." Glancing along the waiting line ahead of them, Salina recognized someone entering the building. "Oh, look, it's Roland and Phoebe!" she exclaimed, nudging Jareth in the side. "Let's meet them inside, shall we?"

"Ah, not just yet," Jareth stated whimsically, holding her by the elbow. "It's not fun if we don't follow the motions, after all," he reminded her, smirking with pleasure at the sour look she gave him in turn. Finally, it was their turn to enter, greeting the vampire who acted as a doorman.

"A little run of the mill for you isn't it, Colin?" Jareth asked, handing the other immortal a set of tickets.

"No more than seeing you actually standing in line!" Colin returned laughing. "I thought I had finally lost all my senses!"

"Very amusing," Jareth responded with feigned sourness. "You remember Salina?"

"Of course," Colin drawled in a silky voice. "How could I possibly forget Mistress of Eighteen Twelve?"

"Oh," Salina chuckled with feigned embarrassment, waving her hand gracefully. "That was so long ago."

"But, unforgettable none the less," he replied, winking at her. "Enjoy your evening," Colin chuckled, handing Jareth their ticket stubs. "Don't lose these," he whispered. "You just might end up with an interesting consolation prize, and don't forget about the mix match."

"I'll be sure to guard them with my life," Jareth joked, smirking at the vampire. "Take care, Colin."

"Oh, Jareth," Salina whispered with awe, breathing in deeply at the entrance of the grand ball room. "Can you smell the humanity? Mmm, it's like fall after the floods come."

"I try not to breathe that deeply around mortals, so excuse me if I don't agree."

"What is with you?" She turned on him in agitation. "Ever since we arrived you've been in this morbid mood of yours, and quite frankly, I'm getting bored with it."

"My apologies," Jareth responded, bowing slightly to show his sincerity. "I've felt a little on edge since arriving," he admitted. "I can't explain why."

"Well, just try to ignore it," Salina pouted prettily, pretending to fix his frock. "And have some fun. That's why we're here after all."

"Perhaps some dancing will make me feel more at ease," Jareth suggested in a lighter tone.

"Oh, now that's something I would never say no to you about," Salina replied with a sly look in her eyes.

XxXxX

"Sarah!" Frank hissed into her ear, handing her one of the drinks he carried. "That woman just shoved money down my tights!"

"Really?" Sarah exclaimed, laughing. "How much?"

"Sarah!"

"I'm sorry, Frank," she told him, trying to stifle her amusement.

"You know, sometimes I think you don't care at all," he accused her, placing his drink on the small high table they stood by.

"Why would you say something like that?" she asked, mildly hurt by his words.

"Because my previous girlfriend would've tried to gauge out that woman's eyes for doing something like that!" he replied heatedly, pulling a twenty from the waist of his tights.

"Well," Sarah countered flatly, her amusement completely replaced with ire. "My previous boyfriend would never have let me talk him into wearing tights in the first place. So, is that an enhancement from the past, or a handicap?"

"That's not what I meant. I'm sor…" Sarah firmly placed her drink on the small table and walked away, her back stiff with agitation. "Sarah!" he called after her, bumping into a couple who had been walking by. "Excuse me," he mumbled. "Sarah! Please! Wait!"

The name alone had drawn his attention with minute curiosity to the mild commotion to his left. The flustered man walking into him gained his attention fully. Jareth turned his head to catch the woman briskly making her way as far from her companion as possible, strategically using the crowd to lose herself in. "Trouble in Sherwood Forest, Sir Robin?" Jareth asked with mild amusement.

"Yea," Frank answered, resigning himself to simply let her go for now. "It's called foot in mouth disease, and it's running rampant tonight." He looked over at the man for the first time, noticing physical characteristics similar to his own. "Are you one of her exes or something?"

Jareth was honestly taken aback by the question, and allowed his surprise to show on his features. "Highly unlikely," he replied. "I only caught a brief glimpse of her as she stormed off. Why would you ask such a question?"

"Sorry," Frank apologized demurely. "You just match her 'type' that's all, as you can tell by looking at me."

"I fail to see why that would have reason for your question."

"Let's put it this way," Frank explained. "If you lined up all of Sarah's ex boyfriends, you'd think we were all related." He raked his fingers through his mid-length blonde hair with frustration. "That was the fourth time I've said the wrong thing since we got here!" he exclaimed, flipping his hand in the air in the direction Sarah had stalked off in. "What the hell is wrong with me tonight?" he asked rhetorically.

"Feeling a bit… on edge?" Jareth prompted carefully.

"Yea," Frank answered, looking back at Jareth. "You feelin that way, too?"

"I was earlier," Jareth admitted. "I found a good dose of dancing alleviated the feeling somewhat."

"I'll try that, then. All I have to do is find her, again." Frank craned his neck in an attempt to locate Sarah, then gave up temporarily. He turned and held his hand out towards Jareth. "Hey thanks, and I'm sorry for slamming into you like that."

"Not a problem. Good luck with Maid Marian," he smirked, briefly shaking the man's hand before the mortal hustled into the crowd in search of 'Sarah'. '_Now there's a coincidence like I've never heard before_,' Jareth thought as he turned to locate his own companion of the evening.

XxXxX

The host for the entertainment stepped up to the DJ stage, taking the microphone in his hand to make an announcement. As the music slowly faded off, and the blaring microphone buzz filled the room, all the participants gave their attention to the stage.

"Good evening," the announcer stated in a smooth calming voice. "May I please have your attention." He paused briefly as the din in the room came to a hush. "Ladies and gentlemen, goblins and ghouls, pirates and…" he glanced down at a woman in the front. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you are, but welcome!" People laughed, and shifted on their feet to catch a glimpse of the unknown guest.

"It is time for the mix and match," he announced. "Now, for those of you who don't know what the mix and match is, I'll tell you," he added exuberantly with a broad smile. "On your ticket stubs, that you were asked to hold onto by our dear old friend, Colin, at the door, you will notice that they are marked with a 'G' or an 'L'. These are to identify the gentlemen from the ladies." He paced the small stage briefly as he continued. "The tickets have been separated into their specific groups and now we shall draw fifty ticket stubs from each basket. I will call out the ticket number, and if you have the matching stub, kindly make your way to the orchestra pit, which is empty at the moment so you needn't fear of tripping on anything," he added with humor.

The host proceeded to call out numbers from random tickets, first from one basket, then the other, he then stapled those two tickets together to hand over to an assistant. Sarah held their stubs in her hand hoping she was picked to dance with someone else for awhile. It would give her a legitimate reason to avoid Frank, who has been nothing but a sour puss most of the night. She squealed in delight and briefly bounced in place when her number was called out. Handing Frank his stub, she collected her skirts, and made her way through the crowd to the orchestra pit.

Sarah was surprised at how organized everything was at the event, even the mulling around of people with matching ticket numbers was being handled in an efficient manner. She stood among the group of people, chatting and comparing costumes with the others while the announcer finished calling numbers from the baskets. Someone gently tapped her on her shoulder, and Sarah turned to see who it was.

"May I have your stub, please?" requested a dark haired woman dressed in a very short white toga, tan sandals that strapped up her calf, and a vine of ivy delicately weaved in her hair. Sarah handed over her stub, and the woman looked at the number on it. She quickly flipped through the few tickets she had in her hand, found the one with Sarah's matching number on it, then looked around for the gentleman she would be matched with. "I was just speaking to this man," the woman informed Sarah, craning her neck from side to side as she peered through the small crowd. "Where did he… oh, there he is," she stated with a smile. "Please, follow me, and I'll introduce you to your mix match."

Sarah couldn't believe her luck when it became apparent that they were heading towards the tall blonde in the purple, jewel studded tail coat. A please smile formed on her lips before they were even within speaking range.

"Your Majesty," the roman woman addressed politely. "The Maid Marian will be your mix match this evening."

Jareth had immediately noticed her in the smaller crowd as he joined those in the orchestra pit, especially while her back was turned to him, he recognized her as the wayward companion to the mortal with foot in mouth disease. But, seeing her face as she approached him made his breath hitch. It wasn't coincidence at all, it seemed, simply extreme odds of fate. "It's my pleasure, Maid Marian," Jareth stated suavely, reaching for her hand to kiss her knuckles. He smiled secretly as her green eyes darkened pleasingly at the simple gesture, but, as of yet showed no sign of recognizing him. '_Perhaps she doesn't remember_,' he thought with mixed feelings.

"If everyone is ready," the host announced through the microphone. "Let the mix match dancing proceed!"

Light cheers and applause filled the grand room as most of the guests made their way to the dance floor. Jareth held Sarah's hand in a proper fashion as they joined the main masse of people.

"May I ask what you are dressed as, Sire?" Sarah asked in character as they placed themselves within the crowd. "Besides royalty, of course," she added with a sly smile.

"I am a Fae King, nothing more," he replied pleasantly, being drawn to her eyes just as he had been before. He placed his hand at her waist, the other holding her hand, to begin dancing.

"But, you wear no crown, Fae King," she flirted lightly, placing her hand lightly upon his shoulder as she fell into step with him.

"I never do," he quipped back at her, matching her flirtatiousness. "It messes up my hair," he added with arrogant humor.

Sarah chuckled becomingly, blushing slightly at his smile. "I feel like I know you from somewhere," she told him, slightly frowning thoughtfully as they followed the flow of dancers around them. "You have the most enchanting eyes. I'm sure I've seen them before."

"Perhaps you do know me," Jareth replied easily with a smile. "Or, perhaps I simply remind you of someone else," he added misleadingly. "Say, a boyfriend of similar appearances?"

"Oh," she voiced flatly, the wonder in her eyes fading. "You bumped into Frank, didn't you?" she asked disgruntled.

"Actually, he bumped into me," Jareth replied casually. "It seems he was suffering from foot in mouth disease."

She huffed in agitation, and shook her head as she lowered her face slightly. "He suffers from more than foot in mouth disease," she muttered under breath, then smoothed her brow, and raised her eyes to meet Jareth's. "That still doesn't explain this feeling that I've met you before."

"Forgive me, but, I feel we should end this dance," he stated with finality, not sure how she would react if she suddenly remembered why he seemed familiar to her. "Allow me to escort you from the dance floor."

"He said something about me, didn't he?" she asked in an accusing tone, stopping dead in the middle of the dance floor. "Oh, that's just great," she surmised, not giving Jareth time to answer. "Why can't I ever go out, and have fun without someone ruining everything!" She turned her eyes up towards the star enchanted ceiling, blinking back tears that threatened to spill over. She took a deep, controlling breath, then plastered a smile on her face for good show. "Well, at least you're trying to be a gentleman about it," she complimented, looking up at Jareth. "Thank you for that much."

She turned away from him, walking away before he had a chance to so much as act as a proper escort. "Sarah!" he called, not wanting to see her upset over a misunderstanding.

She knew that voice. "_Sarah_." It echoed from some deep recess in her mind. "_Turn back Sarah!_" Only one person could say her name like that. "_Sarah!_" And how did he know her name anyway? She stopped suddenly, once again within the throws of dancing couples, and slowly turned around to face him, full recognition in her sea green eyes. '_How could I have not recognized him?_'

He was in front of her within one stride as he caught up to her. "I was uncertain how you would react once you realized who I am," he stated, a half smile briefly graced his face before waning again.

"Frank didn't say anything about me," she surmised, her voice barely a whisper, was lost within the din of laughing people, and loud music. But, he heard her, and smiled half heartedly once more.

"No, he did not." He reached his hand out to her, palm up, with his other hand elegantly behind his back. "Perhaps you would allow us to finish this dance after all?"

Her hand was in his before she realize that she had moved. Blinkingly she looked up at him to see him attempt a small smile. He seemed just as uncertain as she felt. Taking a breath, she stepped closer to him, resting her hand upon his shoulder with more pressure, and graced him with a winning smile.

"Well, this is a shocker, isn't it?" she stated uncomfortably as he led her in step with the other dancers.

"To say the least," he agreed. "I am, very shocked."

"How come I didn't recognize you right away?"

"A touch of magic from long ago," he replied. "I venture into the Aboveground often, most wishers don't remember me at all. I had a feeling you would be one of the few that would."

"Well, it's nice to know that you get out once in a while," she remarked with a wavering smile, trying to conquer all the emotions flowing through her at the moment. She was '_dancing'_ with the Goblin King and every nerve ending was jumping with anxiety. But, at the same time, it felt as though she had met up with an old friend. Like that person from high school that you sat with at lunch and couldn't remember their name to save yourself, but it was good to see them again, none the less.

"I'm not as busy as I once was," he replied, marveling at how well she was taking meeting him again in stride.

"Really?" she quipped with curiosity. "Wife and kids bogging you down?" She outwardly cringed at her choice of words, making a disgusted sound at herself. "I'm sorry, that's not…"

His light chuckling stopped her from apologizing further. "That was amusing," he admitted. "Your world's technology is simply taking its toll over magic," he explained, leading her into a different dance step as the music changed slightly. "And yourself?" he questioned. "Any children of your own?"

"I notice you didn't ask about a husband," she quipped with a short chuckle.

"Frank had introduced himself as your boyfriend," Jareth explained.

"Ah, right," she nodded acceptingly. "Well, with that explained. No, I don't have any children of my own." She glanced up to meet his gaze. "You still haven't answered me, though."

"Noticed that, did you?" he smiled genuinely, noticing her cheeks turn a light shade darker. "I do not have a wife, or a queen, though hundreds of children to care for, if you would translate that loosely."

She laughed lightly at his response. "I can fully give you that translation."

He returned her smile, relaxing somewhat now that he was assured that she wasn't going to make a scene. He noticed how gracefully she stepped in time with him as they moved around the dance floor, just as she had done so long ago. It felt nice holding her again, and he couldn't help but wonder if she felt the same. Her rejection of him had bruised more than his ego, but after awhile he had come to his senses, and once again took hold of his duties as goblin king, and ruler of the labyrinth.

"You dance very well," she complimented, having the need to say something.

"I've had years of practice," he replied lightly.

She laughed delicately, her eyes shone brightly as she looked up at him, a brilliant smile etched on her smooth features. "I'll be kind, and won't ask how many."

XxXxX

Salina approached the mortal assuming the role of Robin of Locksley, noticing how he watched Jareth closely while twirling the mortal woman around the dance floor. "It is acceptable to cut in, you know," she informed him, coming to stand by his side.

"Huh?" He blinked, prying his eyes from the dance floor to the beautiful woman speaking to him. "You're not going to shove money down my tights, are you?"

Salina laughed with pure delight, placing her hand over her mouth as his blue eyes looked away from her with embarrassment. "My apologies, Sir Robin, I meant no offense to your ego."

"It's not my ego that keeps getting offended," he quipped in a sore tone. "If you'll excuse my forwardness, Madam."

"You are very amusing, I would like to dance with you, Sir," she informed him, holding out her hand expectantly, slightly bent at the wrist.

"Oh," he voiced, turning his head away again. "I can't dance to this stuff. That's why Sarah's out there with my replacement," he grumbled, gesturing slightly towards the dance floor in general.

"It bothers you that she dances with another?" Salina questioned with amusement.

"It bothers me because she used to look at me like that." He paused thoughtfully. "Actually, she never looked at me like '_that_'. She must already know him." He slightly leaned sideways, pointing discretely. "She's the one dancing with the tall blonde wearing the purple tail coat with sequins. Look how she's staring up at him." he breathed with frustration. "But, it's my fault. I knew what would happen if I pushed her too much."

"And, what would happen?" Salina asked, her curiosity peeked.

"She rips out your heart, is what happens." He turned to look at the woman with long jet black hair, and captivating amber eyes. "Not intentionally, of course. I don't mean to make her sound like some heartless… shrew, or something. She agrees to date a guy for thirteen months, and that's it, no more, it's over. Unless you manage to win her heart, but that's easier said than done. There's simply no way of pleasing her enough to get to her heart. Then she moves on while you sit heartbroken wondering why you agreed to the idea in the first place."

"I must say, that sounds very bizarre."

"Which part?" he asked. "Her dating for only thirteen months, or guys like me who are stupid enough to go along with it."

"Both actually." Salina glanced thoughtfully out towards the dance floor, watching Jareth more intently. '_Thirteen months, he says. Hmm_.' She noticed how Jareth smiled at the woman he led in step, and how the color rose in the woman's face in response. She gave him a reply and he laughed heartily, the baritone timbre of it filtered to Salina's keen ears. "What did you say her name was?"

"Sarah," Frank answered. "Sarah Williams."

"Now that '_is'_ very interesting," Salina murmured, though too softly to be heard by mortal ears.

XxXxX

The music changed after a brief silence, ending the mix match dancing session. Most of the patrons evacuated the floor to return to other areas to mingle, drink, or watch other entertainment. Jareth led Sarah from the dance floor with his hand at her elbow.

"That was most enjoyable, thank you," Jareth told Sarah with a polite incline of his head.

"It was…" Sarah was so flustered she didn't know what to say accept to agree with him. "… very enjoyable. I'm glad we met again, it was nice… to see you again, that is." She was so nervous her palms were getting sweaty, and she wasn't sure why. She licked at her lips nervously. "I'm having a hard time saying goodbye," she admitted nervously, not knowing what else to say to him.

"Then don't," he replied smoothly, kissing the back of her hand while keeping eye contact. "Take care, Sarah," he smiled, and casually walked into the crowd.

She watched him disappear into the throng of people, noticing how he glanced around in search for someone, then stared stupidly at the hand he had kissed, holding it in her other palm. She felt out of breath, her chest heaved as though she had just met someone famous or something. She smiled fondly. In a way she had.

Taking a deep cleansing breath, she raised her head and turned in the opposite direction Jareth had taken to find Frank. Hopefully he wouldn't be a complete sour puss for the remainder of the night. In all honesty, she couldn't wait for the next two months to be done with so she could be rid of him. The glamour that was Frank had definitely worn off; it was time for Sarah to move on… again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Between The Stars **

**Chapter Two**

**March – St. Patrick's Day – A small villiage in Ireland**

"Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Whoooo!!" The crowd chanted boisterously in one voice as Sarah slammed her empty pint glass to the bar. Wiping the green beer from her chin with the back of her hand, she laughingly let Josh lead her to the poor excuse of a dance floor in the tiny pub.

Gathering her wits about her, in between laughing fits that is, she waited for the beat of the Irish tune to come around for her to begin dancing. Her bare feet kicked out naturally as the leading beat peeled out through the music speakers. Josh mimicked her Celtic steps as best as he could, having practiced with her for a full week just so he wouldn't look stupid on this night. So far, he was doing great, though he knew that the fourth beer Sarah had chugged had a lot to do with it.

Halfway through the dance, Sarah tripped over her own feet, trying to imitate River Dance while inebriated, and fell forward. With quick reflexes, Josh grabbed her, and scooped her bodily into his arms, spinning her around in a tight circle as she laughed hysterically with her arms around his neck. The bar patrons cheered at their efforts, and cat called for them to get off the dance floor, and let the pros show ye how it's done right!

Still laughing, and all hyped up, Josh firmly planted Sarah onto a bar stool, then kissed her solidly on the mouth before moving away from her. She braced herself with her left hand on the bar, and let herself fall backwards to land her head in the lap of… not Josh.

"You're not Josh," she stated numbly, a look of shock surprise on her face.

"Hardly," Jareth smiled down at her.

"You look really familiar," she frowned, staring at him from her upside down perspective.

"Perhaps I simply remind you of someone else," he quipped with amusement.

"Say a boyfriend of similar appearances …" Sarah finished in a monotone voice. "Oh my god!" she yelled as recognition flooded her sopped brain. She yanked herself up into a sitting position, spinning on the stool to turn around, and face him. "I am so sorry!"

"Apology accepted, though unnecessary," Jareth replied airily, casually reaching out to straighten her blouse for her when it slipped to expose too much.

"Of all the places to bump into you," she remarked with a lopsided grin. "I'm going to start thinking you're stalking me or something."

"Stalking you?" he repeated with amusement. "You're almost as far from home as I am."

"Oh, that's true," she agreed, then laughed. "Josh wanted to come to Ireland for St. Patrick's Day, and I figured… ah, what the hell, you only live once, right? So, what are you doing in Ireland?"

"I was here on business," he replied candidly, giving her a knowing look. "I happened to hear the music, and decided to watch the festivities."

"So, you don't have anyone to drink with?" she asked forlornly, her tone full of sincerity.

"I hadn't planned to stay very long." He informed her politely. "Though, I managed to catch your dancing. I thought you did very well."

Sarah blushed as Josh appeared by her side. "You should see her dance when she hasn't chugged a quart of ale," Josh admonished proudly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Hey," he addressed Sarah, tilting her chin up some to look in her eyes. "I was just challenged to play darts, you mind?"

"Go show em what you're made of!" she encouraged him exuberantly.

Josh gave Jareth a wayward glance, and then gave Sarah a firm kiss on the mouth. "I still have ten months, remember."

"I'm all yours," she replied with a smile. Grabbing the full beer placed in front of her, she took a healthy gulp as Josh walked away to join the men at the dart board. "Josh is the darts champion in three leagues," Sarah told Jareth with some pride towards her boyfriend. "He is going to kick their asses!" she snickered into her beer.

"You're no longer with Frank, then?" Jareth asked cautiously, not wanting to seem too interested, though he was curious.

"Oh, heavens, no," she quipped with a deep breath of relief. She took another gulp of beer. "He was gone right after Christmas, and not a day too soon, if you ask me."

"I'm curious, but don't want to pry," Jareth told Sarah, thinking being straightforward would be the best recourse with her.

"Pah, ask away," she told him flailing a hand waywardly in the air.

"Why…"

"Wait a minute…" She held up a finger pointedly. "He needs a beer," she told the bartender who was wiping down the bar near her elbow. The man glanced cautiously at Jareth, who nodded, then moved to get an ale. "Okay, go ahead."

"Don't like to drink alone?" Jareth quipped with mild amusement at her ordering for him.

"It's more like…" she leaned closer to him, lowering her voice to a whisper. "They'll stare at you if you don't have a beer in your hand. You don't have to drink it, just make it poof or something, but have one in your hand anyway."

He openly laughed at her logic, though it made some sort of wayward sense. It also amused him greatly how she casually spoke of his use of magic while commanding him to do her bidding at the same time. Two points he was certain she wasn't aware of doing. "I'm merely curious as to why you ended your relationship with Frank, he seemed more than enamored with you."

"Yea," she nearly snorted. "Aren't they all." She paused long enough for the bartender to place a pint of green ale in front of Jareth, then walk away. "That's their problem, all of them." She leaned closer again to whisper. "He'll be the same way," she stated, nodding her head towards the men playing darts, and then straightened her back. "In another few weeks he won't be as casual about me talking to another guy like he is right now. He'll start to want to know where I'm at, who I'm with, what time I'm coming home, and got forbid if I'm not in the mood to…" she paused, realizing just in time where that sentence was leading. "Well, if I'm just not in the mood to…."

"Have sex?" Jareth suggested with an amused grin.

"Yea, that was the word I was looking for." She smiled shyly, a little color staining her cheeks.

"So, you don't return their affections?" he asked, again with caution, sipping delicately from his mug.

"Sure I do," she replied readily, smiling as he took a sip of ale. "I'm just not stupid enough to fall in love with them."

"That's a bit unfair, don't you think?" he questioned. "When you know they give you their hearts."

"That's their dumb ass faults," she stated, a note of bitterness entering her voice. "You, of all people, know how it works," she quipped with a hint of arrogance. "You tell them the rules, give them a time frame, offer them what they want, and then send them back home when their time is up. It's the simplest set of rules I've ever had drilled into my head." She took another healthy drink of ale.

Jareth stared at her mortified at what she was saying, what he knew to be her version of the truth. That was, by far, not the message he had meant to give her while she was in his labyrinth. "But what do you get out of it, I wonder?" he questioned casually.

"What do I get of it?" she repeated, her brows rising high on her forehead. "I get whatever I want, as it should be." She chuckled lightly. "I get ball room dances, trips to Ireland, weekends on yachts, champagne with strawberries, breakfast in bed, you name it, I get it." She snapped her fingers with a pleased smirk on her face. Jareth noticed how the minute sound had gotten Josh's attention clear across the bar before taking his turn at darts. Sarah leaned forward on the stool, gaining Jareth's full attention once more. "And, I hafta excuse myself, will you still be here when I get back?"

"Would it please you if I were?" he asked challengingly.

She smiled, drunkenly sliding from the bar stool. "You're the only one I'll never play with again, goblin…" She staggered slightly, staring at him wide eyed. "I shouldn't call you that, should I?" she whispered, her voiced tainted with just a hint of fear.

Jareth smirked and leaned closer to her, planting one foot on the floor for balance. "My name is Jareth," he whispered into her ear.

"I knew that," she whispered back, her eyes staring at the bared skin of his chest. "I did," she reiterated. "I knew…that." She quickly turned from him, and unsteadily headed in the direction of the facilities. Jareth reseated himself, drinking liberally from his mug as Josh approached him, sliding easily onto the stool Sarah had vacated.

"Are you one of Sarah's exes?" Josh asked, facing the bar, while gesturing for the bartender to bring him another ale.

"Oddly, I've been asked that before. Why would you assume I've had previous ties with her?" Jareth asked casually, suddenly having a touch of empathy for the men Sarah dated.

"Because of how nervous she acts around you," Josh explained, turning his gaze to the side to meet Jareth's.

"Nervous? How so?" Jareth asked, not noticing her behaving nervously much at all. Drunkenly, yes, nervous, not so much.

Josh chuckled shortly. "Well, you're definitely not one of her exes, or you wouldn't need to ask that." The man turned on the stool, wrapping his fingers around the fresh ale set before him, then stared at Jareth for a moment. "I don't know why you make her nervous, but her foot was moving a mile a minute under this stool the entire time she was talking to you. And that laugh… I heard it all the way over there," he softly snorted, nodding his head in the darts area. "That's not how Sarah laughs when she thinks something is funny, that's how she laughs when she wants you to think, that she thinks, something is funny." He frowned thoughtfully for a moment, shrugged, and drank some more ale.

"We were merely holding a conversation," Jareth stated simply.

"Well, it was one hell of a conversation, then. I've never seen her so flustered."

"She was telling me about her style of dating," Jareth informed the other man, just to see his reaction.

"Oh, of course. I should have known," he commented with realization. "Damn! I knew she found out about Bridgett!" he seethed with self loathing. "So, you're next in line, I guess."

"I don't stand in lines," Jareth stated, smirking covertly to himself. "And, I don't accept anything less than forever from a woman, either."

"Shit," Josh whispered with astonishment. "No wonder she was flustered. You refused to sign the dotted line."

"You actually sign a contract?" Jareth asked, becoming more appalled at the stupidity of these men each time this one opened his mouth. No wonder Sarah ruled over them, they were nothing but servants in waiting.

"Yea," he admitted begrudgingly. "It sounds stupid, I know. But, damn if she ain't worth it. She's not as tough as she leads you to believe. She honest to god makes you feel like a king when you're with her, and when she looks in your eyes…" he breathed deeply. "Nothing else matters. It's her, just her, is all that matters, and you want to do any damn thing she asks," he glanced over at Jareth. "Do you have any idea what I mean?"

"Actually, I know exactly what you mean."

Josh's countenance changed slightly as he glanced past Jareth's shoulder. His back straightened, and he smiled easily as Sarah rejoined them.

"Didn't expect you to still be here," she remarked towards Jareth, slipping an arm around Josh's waist while tilting her head for him to kiss her cheek.

"I was about to leave," Jareth announced, standing from the bar stool. He reached into the pocket of his casual pants.

"That was on me," Sarah stated, meeting Jareth's gaze defiantly. "It's the least I can do for sharing a drink with… with an old friend."

Jareth removed an empty hand from his pocket. He nodded slightly at the bartender, who returned the gesture while drying a cleaned beer mug, then turned his gaze back to Sarah. "Perhaps you'll drop in on me again, sometime," he smirked knowingly, then smiled fully at Josh's confused frown as he glanced from Sarah, who blushed radiantly, back to Jareth. He took a couple steps towards the door, and then paused to look back at Sarah. "What happens to your contract if one of you should… be with another?"

"You mean, cheat?" Sarah asked, her eyes instantly hardening as she turned them to land on Josh. "You were with Bridget, weren't you?" she accused heated.

"No, Sarah, it's not what you…" Josh jumped to his feet, all but pushing Sarah out of his way as he lurched after the retreating blonde. "You son of a bi…"

"Let im go, lad," an Irishman warned, suddenly blocking Josh's way to the door. "You don' want to be messin with the likes o' him."

"What the hell are you pissed at him for, anyway?" Sarah yelled, yanking on Josh's sweater near his shoulder. "You're the one who fucking cheated!"

"It didn't mean anything!" Josh yelled back at her facing her directly. "Just like I don't mean anything to you! So what the fuck is the difference?"

Sarah's expression became cool and stoic, her eyes fixed on Josh with sudden indifference. "The contract is herby null and void, Josh. Anything you have at my place will be in the dumpster by morning."

"Yea, right!" he laughed, stepping back from her, realizing they had drawn quite a crowd of witnesses in the small pub. "You won't even get home before Friday, who are you kidding?"

Without another word, Sarah pushed past him with her shoulders squared, and chin raised defiantly. The patrons of the pub cleared a path for her as she made her way to the door. "I don't ever want to see you again, Josh." With that said, Sarah stepped through the doors into the night.

"Does she know who he is, Paddy?" a bar patron asked the bartender.

"Aye, she knew im alright."

Satisfied with that answer, the patron turned to face the door, giving the two men standing there a hand gesture to come back inside. "She'll be a'right, lads, come back inside."

XxXxX

Sarah barged through the pub doors with all her fury in her fingertips. She blindly strode a good distance down the gravelly path with brisk heavy strides, when she realized that she had turned the wrong way for her hotel. Their, hotel. "Well, fuck him!" she seethed shouted into the night. "I'll find my own damn room! I don't need him!" She paused in her strides to turn around. "I don't need you!" she shouted into the darkness.

Turning back the way she had been going, she stormed quite a few yards when the path suddenly came to an abrupt end. Heedless of anything but her inner fury, she briskly continued onward, not noticing the posted warning signs to stay on the path. Suddenly, a hand grasped her arm, pulling her back before her foot landed on the other side of the gravel. She squealed in surprise, briefly floundered for her balance, and then turned on her attacker with a raised fist ready to strike.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you," Jareth stated calmly, fully confident that she would cease her defensiveness once she recognized him. She did, and he released her arm. "Never step off the path after dark. It's more dangerous than you could ever imagine."

"Fine," she snapped, brushing past him to walk back the way she had come. "Thank you."

"Sarah."

"What?!" she screamed, spinning around to face him, her face flushed, her fists clenched at her sides, her breathing completely erratic.

He calmly watched her as she fought her inner turmoil. Her eyes shone brightly with unshed tears, her heart pounded quickly in her ribs. She wasn't as unaffected by Josh's disloyalty as she wanted him to believe. Jareth remembered back at the ball room, when her eyes had filled with unshed tears at the thought that Frank had spoken poorly of her. No, Sarah Williams wasn't as unaffected as she wanted to be during her relationships. "Come with me," he commanded in a light tone. "I'll show you were you can stay the night."

She remained unmoving; her chest heaved painfully, her lungs burned from the crisp air filling them. She needed to find a place, she knew that. That's what she was doing when he came along. But, she didn't want him to see her like this. She was about to lose it, and she knew it. She'd rather him think her a heartless bitch, than a sorry sap that cries for weeks after each guy she breaks up with.

"I don't need you," she stated unconvincingly in a whispered voice.

"Come, come, Sarah. I'm sure you can do better than that," he taunted, stepping towards her. "I'm not convinced, would you like to try again?"

"No," she breathed, feeling the flood gates starting to open as he drew nearer. He was wearing his other worldly clothes, she noticed. His hair was unruly as it should be, and just as magnificent as she remembered from so long ago. But, it was his eyes that kept her in place, waiting for him to reach her. "Don't touch me," she begged, her voice cracking with emotion. "Please, don't…"

He stopped in front of her, reached his hand out to caress the side of her face, and wrapped his fingers around the side of her neck. "Damn you," she croaked, letting him pull her to his chest as she closed her eyes, and cried out all her hurt.

XxXxX

Paddy, the bartender, stepped into the brisk air after shutting everything down, and locking everything up. Sean, the bouncer, stepped out behind him then lightly tapped Paddy on the shoulder while he locked the main door. Paddy turned to look at his friend from over his shoulder. Sean jutted his chin, and Paddy turned his head in that direction to see what was going on.

Paddy slowly straightened his back, taking a deep breath, as he looked upon the distinguished figure of the Fae King standing with his arms around the woman who had stormed out of the pub earlier.

"Do ye think she's the one?" Sean asked in a quiet whisper, not wanting to disturb the king.

"Aye," Paddy whispered as quietly as his voice would allow. "There would be no other for im to act like that." Quickly, Paddy turned back to the lock, making quick work of it. "Let's be on our way, then. No sense makin' im angry with our prying eyes."

"Too late," Sean breathed, a hint of respected fear in his voice. "He done seen us."

"O' course he done seen us," Paddy whispered, sparing the briefest of glances towards the other worldly being. "Now c'mon afore he beckons us or some such thing."

"Too late," Sean managed to say within an intake of air, his wide eyes glued to the king who summoned them with a simple gesture of his hand.

"I swear upon me eyes, Sean McGregor, I would o' been far from his sights if not fer you!" Taking a deep breath, Paddy strode along the gravelly path towards the regal being, stopping a respectful distance from him. "I begs yer pardon, Sire, we was just closing up, and headin' home. Didn't mean to disturb you at all, Sire."

"She had belongings with her, Paddy," Jareth stated, ignoring the man's trivial, though expected, banter. "Where are they?"

"Oh, I've locked 'em in the pub fer safe keepin'. We didn't know where she had gone off to, but, figured we'd find 'er tomorrow to return her things."

"I'll have them now," Jareth directed.

"Yes, of course, Sire," Paddy nodded, starting to walk away. "If ye give me but a moment, I'll get them fer ye."

"I'll retrieve them myself, if you don't mind."

Paddy nearly tripped over his own feet. "I don' mind, Sire. They be under the cash drawer upon the bottom shelf."

"Come closer, I need your assistance with the woman."

"Is she…a'right?" Paddy didn't want to know what was wrong with her as he sidestepped closer, straining his eyes to see just that little bit better in the dim moonlight.

"She's sleeping, Paddy, nothing more," Jareth reassured the man. "Simply hold her shoulders so she doesn't fall when I leave her."

"Aye, Sire, that I kin do."

Jareth vanished as soon as Paddy hesitantly placed his hands on Sarah's shoulders as instructed. It felt wrong touching this woman at all. She obviously meant something to the Fae King, and if he was correct in his assumption, then this was the one who had bested the king quite a few years back.

That had been a very trying time for Paddy and his friends who worked at the pub. The Fae king had appeared within their presence one night, demanding the best ale they had. None of them knew what to do when the other worldly being had drunk himself into a stupor, and passed out. No one wanted to touch him, yet leaving him on the floor seemed worse. They had finally decided to ask the other fae folk, that resided at the end of the gravel path, for assistance.

Those folk hadn't taken kindly at being disturbed from the safety of the path, but they had come for the King, and taken him home, or wherever it is he goes. The pub literally cleared out within seconds when the King had returned two nights later. After awhile, they became more acquainted with the King, and barely spared him a second glance when he would suddenly be sitting at the end of the bar, quite like he'd done this night when the poor woman had accidentally laid herself upon his lap.

Paddy had been about to speak up for the woman when she obviously recognized the King, and being how he had been smiling at her, the pub patrons simply kept an eye on the pair, while distracting the troublesome boyfriend as far away from them as possible. Paddy's hands were beginning to sweat, despite the brisk air, and the fact that the king had only been gone a few seconds.

Suddenly Jareth returned, appearing in the exact spot that he had left from, wrapping an arm around the woman's back protectively. "That will be all, Paddy,"

"Right, then," Paddy voiced with relief, stepping back from the couple. "Good night, Sire," Turning around, he mumbled under his breath at finding Sean already gone. Just because they had gotten used to the King sitting in the pub, didn't mean they didn't fearfully respect the being, because they did. Being grateful to be done with that mess for the night, the bartender headed home, trying to decide if he should tell his wife about this or not.

XxXxX

Jareth placed Sarah's jacket over her shoulders for extra warmth, though he was magically keeping the chill air from her. She sighed deeply against his chest, and snuggled closer to him before opening her eyes. '_Oh no_,' she thought with dread, remembering exactly where she was, and who she was with. With another deep sigh she lifted her face from his chest to look up at him. "I'm sorry, I…"

"Shh, you needn't apologize for needing someone."

"Easy for you to say," she scoffed lightly. "You have everything you need at your fingertips."

"You think that, do you?" he asked with mild amusement. "I've often wondered why mortals seem to think that. Would you care to enlighten me?"

"Sure, right after you enlighten me of how I'm wrong."

"Fair enough," he stated amicably. "Would you rather remain standing in the cold, or allow me to take you to a warm room for the night?"

'_A room? With you? Oh no, what have I done?_'

"I think you misunderstood my intentions," he stated patiently upon seeing her expression of panic. "I'm only offering you a warm place to sleep, nothing more."

"Oh," she breathed with relief. "You mean here, right? And not… not in your kingdom?"

"It's only a little further down the path," he reassured her, nodding his head in the general direction.

"Okay," she nodded agreeably. They turned, and began to slowly walk in the direction he had indicated.

"Now, how is it assumed that I have whatever I need at my fingertips?" he asked curiously.

Sarah smiled despite herself. "Well, let's see. You're a king, with subjects, and… oh yea, you have magic."

"Hmm," he sounded thoughtfully, placing his arm casually over her shoulders as they walked. "I can see how you might think I have everything under those circumstances."

"Are you going to tell me that you don't?" she asked, liking how she fit perfectly under his arm. She felt warm, comforted,… safe. Something she didn't usually feel from such a casual gesture from a man.

"Not as often as you apparently think," he replied lightly, noticing how she seemed to fit perfectly by his side as they walked, just as she had fit perfectly in his arms while they had danced. He escorted her to the hotel he had referred to, pausing at the front door as the night manager stepped into the vestibule to unlock the doors. "Evening, Sire, how can I be of service to ye?"

"I require accommodations for the lady," Jareth dictated pleasantly.

"Right away, Sire. Please, come in. I will get a key, and show you…."

"That's not necessary," Jareth interrupted, "I'll show the lady to her room once you tell me which one she will have at her disposal."

"Of course," the older man nodded. "I'll just check my book." He shuffled around to behind the desk, and opened his logbook. "I'll need the lady's name, Sire," he requested in a business tone, holding a pen at the ready.

Jareth leaned over the desk with exaggeration; pointedly looking down at the logbook, then met the old man's wary gaze. "She is my guest." He stated simply in a deadpan tone.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Sarah stated, stepping closer to the desk next to Jareth. "There's no harm for my name to be in their book." She glanced from Jareth to the manager. "My name is…"

"Not to be mentioned," Jareth interrupted forcible, fixing Sarah with a pointed gaze while the old man shrank back in his chair. "Simply list her as my guest," Jareth reiterated in a calmer voice, still holding Sarah's gaze.

"She… she may use the master suite, Sire," the old man informed him nervously. "It's on the third floor," he explained in a trembling voice. "Down the hall, at…at the end."

Satisfied at having his authority recognized, he straightened his back, placed a hand at Sarah's elbow, and magically took them both to the third floor.

"Was that honestly necessary?" Sarah asked after regaining her composure of suddenly being in different surroundings. "That poor man almost had a heart attack, you scared him so badly."

"There's nothing wrong with the man's heart," Jareth replied simply, walking down the hall. "It's his lungs that are failing."

"That's just as bad!" Sarah argued, following behind him. "And, why did you make a big deal about my name not being in the register? What difference would it make if I was Sarah Williams, or "your guest"?"

Jareth stopped suddenly and spun around, causing Sarah to slam bodily into him. "Why do you insist on making things difficult?" he asked, his tone of voice exasperated. "I was simply preventing you from having a confrontation with Josh in the morning. I fully expect him to search for you, and as my guest, you will remain safe."

"So, you expect me to stay inside this hotel for four days, hiding, while he's out there having fun, or doing whatever he wants?" she asked incredulously, placing her hands on her hips. "I don't think so. I plan to take full advantage of being in Ireland, and see some of the sights."

"I could show you whatever you wanted, if only you asked."

"That's pushing it, I think, old wounds, and all that." She expelled a breath with exasperation, folding her arms in front of herself, shaking her head slightly while diverting her gaze. "I'm sorry," she murmured sincerely, raising her eyes to his again. "I appreciate your help. All of it, as a matter of fact. Letting me know about his cheating, keeping me on the path, getting me a place to sleep," She lowered her eyes to stare at his chest. " ….being there for me. Thank you."

"You're welcome." He knew it hadn't been easy for her to say all of that. He knew he wouldn't be able to so openly give his appreciation if roles were reversed.

"I just don't feel comfortable accepting your generosity too much, or does that make me unappreciative?"

"It makes you cautious, nothing more."

They silently stared at one another for a long moment before Sarah broke the silence. "Will I see you again? Before I leave Ireland, I mean."

"Most likely not, unless I'm specifically needed. You can call me if the need arises."

She nodded, then asked with a grin, "Are you going to let me in the room, or are we just going to stand in the hallway talking all night?"

He smiled graciously, and reached out to gently caress her cheek. When Sarah opened her eyes, she was alone inside the room. "So much for goodbye."

XxXxX

Jareth returned to his castle, knowing that the local people of the small village in Ireland would look out for Sarah on his behalf. They feared him greatly, yes. But they retained a respect for him as well. He was a powerful king from another realm, they accepted that, and treated him in kind.

"May I approach the king in his private chambers?" Selina's disembodied voice announced in the air.

Jareth cringed, and sighed deeply, but resigned to accept her company. "You may."

"She's the one, isn't she?" Selina asked, appearing upon a sofa near the fireplace, lying on her side, and facing Jareth.

"What of it?" he asked defensively, not trying to deny what Selina obviously had already figured out.

"I'm no threat to your lady, Jareth," Selina assured him firmly. "We've been acquainted far too long for me to begrudge you having affections towards her."

"Then, make your point, Selina. I'm tired, and want to rest."

Selina gracefully moved from the sofa to stand in front of Jareth. She brushed the longer strands of his hair from over his shoulder, smoothing out imaginary wrinkles in his shirt. "You want to dominate her like you do everything else in your life, Jareth. And, there is a part of her that aches for such dominance. But, I've been watching her, and I've seen how she also likes to dominate everything in '_her'_ life." She stepped away from him, pausing dramatically as she slid gracefully back to the sofa, crossing her legs elegantly. "Would you accept my advice if I gave it?"

"Most likely not," he replied curtly, resting his hand upon the stone above the fireplace. He idly created a crystal, then let it disappear again, a sure sign to anyone who knew him that he was agitated, and bored.

Selina smiled agreeably. "Then allow me one last observation before I leave you to rest. Sarah sees no wrong in her lifestyle. She thinks that she has been living up to your expectations, my friend. Expectations that you had shown her when she was very impressionable. It has never occurred to her that '_she'_ was truly the prize you desired."

Jareth moved from the fireplace toward the sofa after Selina had vanished, sitting heavily upon the cushions. He had been mortified by Sarah's cruel treatment of the men in her life, until Josh had made it clearer that those men purposely allowed her to treat them in such a way. Jareth had become simply disgusted with the men in her life at that point, and was pleased with himself for bringing Josh's indiscretions to Sarah's attention with such ease.

But, he hadn't been prepared for her to become so distraught over the man. After preventing her from making a grave error, and pulling her back to the path, she had literally cried in his arms, trembling and sobbing, until she'd used up all her energy, and simply drifted off to sleep. Jareth had been overwhelmed that she had entrusted him so greatly, to show herself to him at her weakest time. Though, she had begged him not to touch her, she hadn't made any attempt to avoid him either.

Too tired to think much more upon the matter, he pulled his legs up, and stretched out on the sofa. Closing his eyes, he allowed his mind to formulate dreams of contracts and time clocks, while dancing between the stars holding the one woman whose cruel green eyes haunted him constantly.


	3. Chapter 3

**Between The Stars **

**Chapter Three**

**May – May pole day** **– Location Unknown**

Jareth stepped out from the shade of trees wearing regal finery. Approaching the mass of mortals joined in a circle, he paused just beyond the point of intrusion. The Priestess of the ancient tradition called upon her gods and goddesses, drawing a circle of protection for her group. They chanted their songs and lit their candles.

After the opening ceremony had been concluded, the priestess withdrew herself from the coven to meet with him. "Merry meet and welcome, my Lord," she stated respectfully, inclining her chin in respect. "You honor us with your presence this day. Would you join us in our festivities?"

"Merry meet, Priestess of the Coven of the Glenn," Jareth returned pleasantly. "I accept your welcome, though my intention is simply to enjoy your celebration, if you would accommodate me."

"Of course, my Lord," the woman garbed in green and silver replied quickly. "There is always a place for one such as yourself." She turned sideways as Jareth stepped forward to mingle with the crowd.

"There are many more in attendance this year," he commented casually as they strolled side by side.

"Yes," the older woman replied with a deep sigh. "It is the age of discovery," she chuckled lightly. "Unfortunately, most of those who join our festivities aren't interested in the ancient rituals and customs. They seek what magic they can perform, and are often lead down the wrong paths."

"I've noticed an increase of energies from this realm," Jareth replied. "Though, I don't overtly concern myself, as you know."

"I am aware of your personal interests in our realm, Lord Jareth," the woman smirked knowingly, bowing her head with a smile as someone greeted her as they walked by. "I have to admit that I am not surprised to see you this day." She paused to face him. "I have been gifted, as you know, and my sources tell me that the Fates are shifting in your favor. There is a lot of energy in motion around you, Lord Jareth."

"There is '_always_' a motion of energy around me, Priestess," he grinned at her.

She smiled, bowing her head with a light chuckle. "I'll make sure you're accommodated during your visit."

"Thank you," he replied, inclining his head slightly before turning to find a place to settle himself. The priestess took a sudden gasp of air, placing her hand to her forehead. "Are you alright?" Jareth asked with mild concern. "Has my presence upset one of your gods, again?"

As quickly as it came, the light-headedness left her. "No," she replied, regaining her composure. "Nothing as serious as that, thankfully." She stepped closer to him, her hands grasping the sides of her long skirt nervously. "Someone is coming," she told him as a warning. "Someone who will recognize you, and may not be as discrete to your true nature as I have always been."

"Someone of ill intent?" he questioned with a raised elegant brow. He was already aware of the presence the Priestess spoke of, being amazed once again at how some mortal bloodlines have retained the magical gifts given them so long ago.

"I can't tell," she answered honestly. "But, I know it will be a woman who has had a connection with you before."

"Priestess of the Glenn," Jareth smiled at her patiently. "I have many connections within your realm. I assure you that the woman you speak of won't cause a disturbance in your festivities. In fact, I doubt she's even aware of my presence here as of yet."

"Of course," the woman replied humbly, realizing that she had most likely spoken out of line. "I hope I haven't insulted you, my Lord."

"Not at all. It's reassuring to know that the gifts are still alive within this realm." He stepped back away from her, giving her an obvious dismissal. "I shall enjoy the entertainment during your celebration."

She inclined her head with a smile, walking away from him to join her coven, and share in food and music before they began their dancing.

Within minutes a handful of seasoned coven members approached him bearing provisions, food, and drink. Once they had set everything up for him, and introduced themselves in case he needed anything further, they left him alone to enjoy himself.

Being drawn to a small crowd by the titillating sounds of an ancient tune, Jareth meandered through the hordes of people who were relaxing and enjoying themselves upon blankets and folding chairs within the grassy clearing. Each group that he passed wished him a good day along with various foods, and of course some cider or ale.

With a full stomach, and is third tankard of ale in his hand, he finally reached the group of musicians. Speaking with them casually, he was invited to join them after mentioning his own talent with a few instruments. Seating himself upon a tree stump, he was handed a string instrument when he suddenly felt '_her_' presence nearby.

Opting to play a woodwind flute instead, he traded the instruments with good humor and joking amongst the musicians. Licking his lips, he placed the woodwind to his mouth, and began to play a series of notes that very few mortals have ever heard before. The music was spell binding in itself, the alluring flow of notes reached every human ear present. The people left their blankets and chairs, abandoned their food and drinks to gather around the mystical sounds emanating from the woodwind as Jareth played on.

Sarah tripped on the hem of her dress for the fifth time since leaving the car, almost dropping the cake she carried with both hands.

"Whoa," Kenny uttered, grabbing her arm quickly. "You alright?" he asked with mild concern. "Maybe I should carry that, and you carry this."

"I am not carrying a case of beer, Ken," she remarked sourly. "It's bad enough that you even brought that with us. This isn't a beef and beer, it's a May Pole celebration."

"Right," he quipped defensively. "Eat, drink, and be merry. This is the drink, and be merry part."

Sarah shook her head, giving up at making him understand the tradition and purpose of the festivities. When she had met Kenny four weeks ago, and he said that he was Wiccan, Sarah thought that they would have some things in common, without a contract for a change. But, she found out '_after_' telling him about the celebration at the Coven of the Glenn that he was just a wanna-be in pretty much everything he did in life.

Reaching the field where the gathering was being held, Sarah huffed again at being late, one of the only things that Kenny was good at. Stepping from the shade of trees she immediately caught the beautiful music that was drawing a crowd on the other side of the clearing.

Walking in that general direction, she kept her eyes out for the Priestess, whom Sarah had just met about a month ago when she entered a shop for a tarot reading. After the episode in Ireland, Sarah had really felt lost, and figured it wouldn't hurt to see if something as mystical as tarot cards could give her some direction when everything else seemed to fall short. The Priestess herself had done her reading, which impressed Sarah greatly, and had personally invited her to come to the festivities today.

She was about halfway across the clearing, Kenny ambling along next to her, when the music changed slightly. After only a couple of bars worth of notes, Sarah stopped dead in her tracks. "I know that music," she commented in a soft voice.

"Well, with all the weird shit you listen to, I wouldn't be surprised," Kenny remarked, shifting the heavy case of beer in his hands.

Sarah frowned and gave him another sour look before moving to stand in front of him. "Here, hold this," she directed curtly. "I'll be right back."

"Hey! Wait a minute!" he shouted after her as she walked off. "This ain't light beer you know! Sarah!"

"Just put it down for now, then," she tossed over her shoulder as she kept walking.

"This bitch is proving to be high maintenance, if you ask me," Kenny grumbled as he put the case down, with the cake on top. "Especially for someone who doesn't put out."

Jareth played the end note of his song, and listened with his eyes still closed, to the sigh of silence that surrounded him before the people started to clap in appreciation to his music. With a smile on his face, he opened his eyes to see Sarah standing in front of him amongst the crowd.

"This makes it official," Sarah stated, crossing her arms loosely in front of her chest. "You're definitely stalking me," she added with a humorous smirk.

"Ah," Jareth sounded, rising to his feet as he handed the woodwind to the musician next to him. "But, I arrived first," he remarked with his eyes sparkling mischievously.

"But, you '_knew_' I would be here," she grinned up at him with surety, her green eyes sparkling with her own humor.

"You can't prove that," he grinned.

"You being here is proof enough." She smiled fully with a light laugh. "I knew it was you as soon as I heard the music. It's nice to see you, again."

"Like wise," he returned with a pleasant expression on his face.

The crowd was dispersing, everyone returning to their placements to continue eating. The Priestess had noticed Sarah's arrival with the man whom she promptly left to fend for himself. She knew as soon as Lord Jareth had changed his tune that this was the woman she had '_felt_' with her premonition. After hearing the casual way the woman spoke to the lord, and his easy banter with her in turn, the priestess had quietly slipped unnoticed into the crowd.

"You've come with a new companion," Jareth remarked as he lead Sarah towards the blanket that had been set up for him to sit upon earlier.

"That's Kenny." She made an obnoxious, and most unladylike sound. "I'm starting to think I'm cursed, or something," she remarked in an aggravated tone. "It seems like they go from bad to worse with each one I meet."

"You don't honestly expect me to reply to that, do you?"

"No," she replied airily, sitting down on the blanket as Jareth lowered himself. "But, maybe you could give me a crystal or something that would tell me all about someone I meet up front, that way I won't have to put up with…"

"Hey, Sarah!" Kenny shouted at the top of his lungs from across the clearing. "Where should I put the beer?"

"Somebody help me," Sarah mumbled under her breath, watching as Kenny ripped open the case and pulled out four bottles of beer to hold up in the air over his head, two bottles in each hand.

"I notice he doesn't have blonde hair," Jareth commented, purposely ignoring her softly spoken plea. "Have you lost your fascination for that particular type?"

Sarah turned her head to look at Jareth. "He '_is_' blonde," she informed the relaxed king next to her. "He decided that being a brunette would make us look awesome together, and dyed his hair brown."

Jareth lazily let his gaze follow the obnoxious man as he popped open two beers, then strode over to the people sitting on the blanket nearby yelling drink and be merry at the top of his voice. The people smiled politely, and took the offered bottles, only to frown and talk amongst themselves while placing the beer to the side after he walked away.

"Grant me one dance today, and I'll take care of dear Kenny for you," Jareth propositioned.

"Oh! Could you turn him into a goblin?" she asked facetiously, clapping her hands with feigned excitement.

"Merry meet," a pleasant feminine voice greeted from behind Sarah. Sarah craned her neck, placing a hand up to shield her eyes from the bright sun, and scooted herself slightly in a half circle to look at the woman standing there. "Are you enjoying our festivities?"

"I'm trying to," Sarah answered honestly, frowning as she lowered her gaze to see Kenny hand delivering beer to more people. "I'm sorry, I had no idea that he would behave like that." She shifted herself to her knees, so she didn't have to crane her neck to much, and smoothed the skirt over her legs. Her new position put her closer to Jareth. "My friend and I were just discussing how we could get him to leave."

The Priestess let her gaze shift briefly to look at Jareth, then back to Sarah. "No need to apologize," she reassured Sarah in a friendly voice, then frowned with thought. "You were the young woman I did a reading for a few weeks ago, aren't you?"

"Yea, that was me," she chuckled uncomfortably. "You said nothing made any sense, and tried to do the reading twice before inviting me to come here today for not being able to give me any advice."

"Yes, I remember that reading distinctly now," the priestess stated, nodding her head with recollection. Her eyes flitted over at Jareth briefly as she smiled, and stepped backwards. "Things aren't always what they seem," she remarked casually. "Sometimes you have to go back to go forward. There's something from your past that you need to reconnect with," she stepped further away from their blanket. "But, I'm sure things will become clearer for you in the upcoming months."

Sarah's expression went slack at the woman's words, she looked over at Jareth with shocked, wide eyes. "She can't possibly…" Sarah whispered in a rush of words. "Did you…?" She left her question hanging as she turned to look back up at the woman only to find that she had continued along her way, and was now speaking with Kenny, who was happily drinking a beer in one hand, and waving a barbequed chicken leg in the other.

"She's aware of my nature, Sarah," Jareth told her in a comforting tone, knowing that Sarah was extremely upset by the Priestess's words. "Though, she doesn't see me in the same light as you do."

"You mean as…" She leaned closer to him so no one else could overhear her whisper. "You mean about you being the Goblin King?"

"That, as well as a few other things," Jareth replied casually.

"What other things? I don't know much of anything about you, myself." She frowned thoughtfully, straightening her back. "Huh, I never thought about it before, but," she looked up at him. "I don't know anything about you, really."

"Don't you?" he questioned suggestively, his tone dropping to a sultry timbre. He gathered himself to sit up, crossing his long legs in front of him, then rested his forearms on his knees. "Not many mortals are aware of how often I come to this realm, as you have come to realize," he told her directly. "Most mortals aren't aware of my fondness for dancing, for drinking with a friend, or that I am remotely capable of simply keeping someone safe when she would have stepped off the path, greatly endangering herself."

"Are people aware of your fondness for glitter and how misleading you can be?" she asked coyly.

"Not so much the glitter," he smirked. "However, I am cunning, I am powerful, and I am a king from another realm. Those things are well known to the select mortals I associate myself with."

"How many people here would have a heart attack if I unceremoniously dumped a bucket of ice water over your head?" she asked him with mischievousness.

"At least four," he answered with a smile. "But, I don't think that would help you're situation to be rid of an annoyance."

Sarah involuntarily scanned the field of people, locating Kenny chugging ale with some men on the far side of the clearing. She sighed deeply, resigned as she looked back at Jareth. "I wouldn't actually do that to you, Jareth, I was only curious to know how many people here know who you are."

"Ah, now the answer to that question would be, one."

She looked away from his intent gaze, feeling her cheeks flush hotly as he stared at her unwaveringly. "You've always been able to make me feel special," she stated uncomfortably, diverting her eyes shyly. "Even when I was about to fall on my face."

"You are special, Sarah Williams, you simply haven't realized that yet."

"Why?" she asked, looking up at him with wonder in her eyes. "What makes me so special?"

"Because you are no ordinary girl."

"But, how am I different?" she insisted. "What makes me unordinary?"

"There you are!" Kenny announced boisterously, staggering drunkenly onto the blanket to collapse on his side next to Sarah. "You have to drink some of this ale, babe! It'll make you merry in no time flat!" He laid his head back, trying to land it on her lap as he sprawled himself on his back.

Sarah pulled her legs up so that Kenny's head thumped onto the ground. He rubbed the back of his head laughingly. "Ah, come on. You know you brought me here for a reason, babe." He looked up at her leeringly, his hand drunk heavy when he placed it on her knee.

Sarah looked pointedly over at Jareth. "I'll dance with you every damn day if that's what you want, just get rid of him, right now."

"My pleasure," Jareth replied tight lipped, not liking the man's behavior at all. Leaning slightly forward, he waved a hand in front of Kenny's face, then sat back again. Kenny instantly fell back with his eyes closed, finally still, and quiet.

"What did you do to him?" she questioned curiously, poking Kenny in the ribs none too gently with her toe.

"He'll awaken by morning," Jareth reassured her, intrigued at her reaction of the man falling unconscious. She obviously had more trust in him than he had first thought. Or, she simply didn't care for the young man, which wouldn't surprise him since she'd barely spared a glance towards him, and when she did it was with a displeased expression.

He held his hand out to her, motioning her to stand. "Shall we join in the dance?"

"Oh," she sounded, giving her attention to the people gathering around a huge pole with ribbons hanging from the decorated top. "I… uhm…" she looked back at Jareth. "I've never '_actually_' been to one of these festivities before. I'm not sure of what to do."

"Just follow everyone else," he stated simply.

She brought a foot up from her kneeling position to stand only for the hem of her skirt to catch under the toe of her sandal as she attempted to rise. With both hands holding the rest of the skirt, she fell forward with no way to block herself from falling. Jareth grabbed her shoulders, allowing himself to fall backwards with her forward motion, coming to lay on his back with Sarah sprawled on top of him in a heap.

He laughed heartily, wrapping his arms around her as they settled in place. The sound of his laughter had an extremely arousing effect on her that was as surprising as it was alluring. "I hardly see the humor in this," she quipped, pushing against his chest.

"I do," he stated laughingly, comfortably folding his hands at her back, his fingers interlocking loosely. "It seems to have become a habit for you to fall into my lap, quite literally, whenever we meet."

"That was an accident!" she retorted indignantly. "And, it was only that one time, hardly grounds to call it a habit."

"And this time?" he questioned, grinning up at her with shining eyes. "You seem most comfortable in your current position," he teased with amusement.

"I never said that I didn't enjoy your company, Jareth."

"No, you haven't, have you," he commented suggestively.

She felt a warmth spread throughout her body at the intensity of his mismatched gaze. She shifted upon him, not quite an effort to get up, but definitely a sign that she was uncomfortable. "I think we're missing the dancing," she stated lamely for the sake of something to say.

"I've changed my mind," he stated decisively. "I'd rather remain as we are for a while."

Not a single thought entered her mind to refute him. With a shy smile, she lowered her head to his chest, breathing in the scent of him with slow deep breaths. She liked his scent, maybe too much, but she didn't care. If he wanted her to be this close to him, then she wanted to breathe in a scent that nothing in this world could duplicate.

He shifted his legs around hers more comfortably, her skirt fanned over both of them in a mound of material. With his fingers interlocked comfortably at the small of her back, he closed his eyes, feeling a contentedness he hadn't felt in a seriously long time.

"What is it about you that makes me feel so comforted?" Sarah asked quite awhile later, becoming aware of the sun starting to set and bon fires being lit as the festivities continued in full swing.

"You accept me as I am, as I accept you," he answered lazily. "I don't have the need to try and impress you like the men you keep company with seem to do."

"Really?" she remarked questioningly, lifting her head to look at him. "You mean your powerful display of magic wasn't supposed to impress me?" she asked, raising her brows higher on her forehead. "When you changed from an owl into a man wasn't meant to impress? Offering me my dreams, then proving that you could give them to me by way of an elaborate ball, altering time, standing upside down, walking '_through_' me like a ghost… none of those things were supposed to impress me?"

He stared at her thoughtfully for a moment. '_Perhaps I am the first_,' he thought. '_Just as her beau's accuse me of being._' "Well, did it work at least?" he asked with sudden exuberance. "Because I seem to recall being rejected quite thoroughly for my efforts."

She lowered her gaze unseeingly to his neck, feeling a stab of… guilt? "Yes," she responded, meeting his eyes. "I was very impressed by the king of goblins. But, it's Jareth, Lord of the Labyrinth, who I've come to admire these past few months."

"Both are one and the same."

"Are they?" she questioned, daringly brushing a strand of hair from his face. "You seemed more frightening as the king of goblins."

"You seem just as fearful of me now as you had before," he commented. "Your pulse races, your heart pounds erratically whenever I am near you. Isn't that frightening to you?"

"Yes, it is," she admitted in a soft voice. "More than you think."

"And, what is it that I think, Sarah?" She stared blankly at him, not knowing what to say. "I'm sure you'll figure that out soon enough," he remarked kindly. "But, for now, I'm afraid I must return home."

Sarah nodded, her body reluctant to move from his. "Yea, you wouldn't want to miss your flight, now would you?" she remarked with humor to make up for her uncomfortableness.

He laughed heartily as they got to their feet, once again drawing attention to them by people with curious glances. "What should I do about '_him_'?" Sarah asked of Kenny after standing up. "He's going to wake up, and head straight to my place." She turned her face to look at Jareth while he fixed his clothes. "I'm not sure if that would be good or not, Jareth."

Jareth took a long deep breath while regarding her thoughtfully. He stepped closer to her, and took her chin within his forefinger and thumb. "I'll see that he never bother's you again."

"In return for what?" she asked with a mild amount of uncertainty.

"In return for you to be more selective in the company you keep from now on."

"I can do that," she smiled agreeably, then licked her lips, and slightly shifted her weight. "My falling in your lap may not be a habit. But, my reluctance to say goodbye seems to be."

He stepped closer to tenderly touch his lips upon her forehead. When she opened her eyes she found herself standing in the center of her own living room. She looked around her place, letting the feeling of disappointment wash over her for finding herself alone. Wrapping her arms around herself, she lowered her chin to her chest, and smiled secretly at smelling his unique scent that still lingered on her clothing and skin.


	4. Chapter 4

**Between The Stars **

**Chapter Four**

**July – Independence day** **– Philadelphia, Pennsylvania**

"Excuse fucking me!" Sarah exclaimed heatedly, backing away from Anthony Montelli. "You touch me like that again, and there will be hell to pay!" She turned sideways to address her friend Jeannie. "Who the hell does this guy think he is, Jeannie?"

"He's my cousin on my dad's side," Jeannie mumbled uncomfortably before addressing her cousin directly. "Look, Anthony, she ain't interested, okay? I'm sorry, I thought you two would hit it off better."

"Well, after all the money I dropped on you bitches this weekend, she better get over herself real fast." He stated indignantly, readjusting his belt around his pudgy bellied waist. "I don't mind spending the dough. But, I'm gonna get something for it, you know what I mean, Jeannie?"

"Well, I don't give a rat's ass how much money you spent," Sarah piped up. "My answer is no, and that's all you have to know."

"Let me tell me you what you need to know, sweet cheeks," he started saying stepping forward in Sarah's direction, when suddenly a motorcycle came revving to a spinning stop precisely between them. Anthony jumped back, as did Sarah, as the rider took off his black shiny helmet.

"I couldn't help but over hear your dilemma," Jareth smirked at Sarah. "Would you care to go for a ride?"

An expression of pure astonished shock was slowly replaced with a broad smile that spread over Sarah's face as Jareth smiled connivingly back at her. His blonde hair was not sticking up in the air, but hung evenly just above his shoulders. A leather jacket covered a black t-shirt, his hands were adorned with biker gloves. His pants were black leather, nearly skin tight, and black boots had chains around the ankles. "You don't have to ask me twice," she commented, stepping forward to swing her leg over the bike behind Jareth, wrapping her arms around his ribs with familiarity.

"Who the fuck is this guy?" Anthony yelled irately. "All I done for you this weekend, and you go riding off with some pussy on a bike?"

"Uhm…" Sarah pretended to think, resting her right cheek on Jareth's back as she looked at Anthony. "Yea, pretty much. I prefer blondes anyway."

Jareth revved the bike as Anthony let loose a spiel of profanity, then spun the bike into motion, leaving Anthony and the other women standing in a cloud of burnt rubber. "Do you really know how to drive this thing?" Sarah yelled above the engine and wind.

He turned his head to look at her peripherally, a smirk clearly on his lips. "Put your helmet on." There was suddenly a helmet on Sarah's head, the clear plastic visor protecting her eyes and face from the wind created by how fast he was driving, his own helmet back in place.

"I'll take that as a yes!" she yelled, tightening her arms and thighs around him as he took a corner slightly too fast, making the bike tilt to one side dangerously close to the ground.

Jareth liked the feel of her tightly holding onto him as he purposely zigzagged down one small street after another. Her body was flush against his back, her thighs clenched around his, her arms squeezed his ribs for dear life. Mortality was the only thing that could spark such a reaction out of a being. The fear of dying before ones time, yet thrilled at the chance to challenge such a fate. And not once did she ask him to slow down.

Using an onramp to Interstate ninety--five, he daringly sped up to twice the speed limit just to see her reaction. Being on a flat, straighter surface, she lifted her head up over his shoulder to get the full rush of traveling at a hundred and ten miles per hour on not much more than wind and a prayer, and a magical being who wouldn't let anything bad happen to her.

Dropping their speed down to the limit, he used the Penn's Landing exit, then made a left onto Columbus Blvd. Weaving in and out of traffic, he turned into a parking lot, regally waving a hand at the guard in the collection booth who raised the bar for them without question.

"How do you do that?" she asked from under her helmet, thinking how she sounded like Darth Vader in the stupid thing.

"We weren't the droids he was looking for," Jareth replied, chuckling under his breath as Sarah burst into a fit of laughter. He found a vacant slot close to the pavilions and walkway and parked the bike. Sarah removed her helmet, her hair flying around her head in a static mess. Shaking her head vigorously, she tucked the helmet between herself and Jareth to smooth her hair down with her hands. "You are absolutely amazing!" She told him while trying to tame her tresses. "If you can read minds, how come you never reacted to half of the things I've thought before?"

"Who says I can read minds?" he quipped, shifting to pull his leg off the bike in front of her, careful to not kick her by accident.

"Because I was just thinking…" She stopped talking suddenly, a thoughtful frown creasing her brow. "Wait a minute, why are you here at all? This isn't exactly a holiday that your realm would be connected with like St. Patty's Day and Beltane."

"No, it's not." He agreed simply. "I just like watching fireworks. They seem much more impressive when someone else makes them go off."

"Right," she replied unconvinced, getting off of the bike. "And you just '_happened_' to pick Philadelphia to enjoy said fireworks?"

"No," he drawled long and slowly. "I picked Philadelphia because I knew you were going to be here."

"Ah-huh," she voiced conclusively, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "So, you're stalking me again, are you?" she quipped with a grin, her eyes shining mischievously.

"If I were truly stalking you, dear Lady," he replied in a pleasant tone full of humor, walking around the bike to stand very close to her. "I wouldn't constantly find you in the company of others whom you need assistance with."

She frowned sourly at the reminder about Anthony. "He wasn't supposed to get any ideas about any of us wanting to hook up with him at all. I heard Jeannie talking to him on the phone before we even made our arrangements to come here. She was very specific."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, you simply take so much for granted, don't you?" he asked, his tone quieter, more sincere, than it was before.

"Now don't start that again," she huffed. "I planned a trip with some friends, we made arrangements to stay with Jeannie's cousin, Anthony, for a couple of nights, he shows us around, we see fireworks, and we go home," she finished with oomph. "There was no '_taking anything for granted_' in any of it."

"Then, Anthony was simply not what he seemed, was he?"

"Ooooh, you're impossible!" she gritted at him, shoving her hands on her hips. "Why does everything have to be one or the other with you?"

"Because they are very good rules to live by, no matter what realm you're from."

She stared at him defiantly trying to think of a good reply only to come up short. They were good rules to be honest. Every situation he had helped her out of had either been because she took too much for granted or things just weren't what they seemed to be. "I really despise you sometimes, you know that?" she quipped, though her voice held no malice.

He smiled slightly, just enough to let her know that he wasn't fooled by her comment. "I found the perfect place to watch the fireworks," he informed her, stepping to her side to casually wrap an arm over her shoulders before leading her towards the walkway along the river.

"Let me guess, you conjured a magical boat?"

"You can be so cynical at times," he commented in a neutral tone, looking over at her. "No, but, somewhere just as suitable."

He lead her along the walk with purposeful strides, weaving through throngs of people who leisurely strolled or simply stood around waiting for the light show to begin. Coming up to another crowd, they slowed their pace to inch along, politely excusing themselves as they cut through the line of people waiting to get aboard the Moshulu, an old sail ship that had been turned into an elegant restaurant and bar for fine dining.

"Tommy, for the last time, get down from there!" a woman chastised her son as they were walking past. Sarah turned her head to see a little boy of about eight years old precariously balanced on top of a wooden pylon that the ship was tied off on. "I wish you'd fall in," the woman spat angrily when the boy didn't listen, turning her attention back to the small group she was with. "That would teach him, now wouldn't it," she stated laughingly.

Jareth stopped dead in his tracks, yanking Sarah's arm with a jolt. Before Sarah fully turned fearful eyes back towards Jareth, the boy cried out in alarm as a splash was heard in the river. "Jareth," she whispered in a pained voice laced with disappointment. "Why would you…"

"I've done nothing," Jareth grit defensively as people began to scream, rushing to the edge to look over the side into the murky depths of the Delaware River.

"Oh my god, he fell in!" a woman in an elaborate gown screamed. "Somebody help! That little boy fell in the river!"

"I don't see him!" A lady shouted hysterically.

"He got pulled down by the undercurrent!" another man yelled, seating himself on the low stone wall to remove his shiny expensive shoes.

"Martin," a woman chastised, placing her arm on the man as he undid his laces. "You can't possibly consider diving into that murk! It's nothing shy of sludge water!"

Jareth watched the boy's mother as the din behind her finally sunk into her brain. She turned as though in slow motion to look at the point she had last seen her son. Her eyes grew wide with terror, her mouth formed a perfect 'O' as she pushed forward towards the river. "Tommy! Oh my god, no! Tommy!"

With swift agility Jareth moved through the crowd, and plunged into the river head first. A few seconds later the murky surface broke with Tommy's upper body held high over Jareth's head. The two men in tuxes grabbed the boy's limp body from Jareth hands, and laid him on the gray stone slab by the thick metal rail.

A man and two women stretched their arms out to help Jareth up and out of the water, and onto the pylons. He climbed over the railing, spewing water from his nose and mouth, his hair plastered to his head, his clothes streaming with water. He pushed his way over to the boy, curtly relieving a woman who had started CPR on the boy. Jareth sat Tommy up, and placed his hand between his chest and throat. "Come, come, now. It's time to breath, Tommy," he whispered, sending a small wave of magic through the boy. "And, you will remember naught of what just happened to you."

Water suddenly spewed from the boys lungs, projecting through his mouth and nose as Jareth gently patted his back. Sarah suddenly realized that she had a thick shawl covering her shoulders, and took hold of it while stepping forward through the surging crowd. "Let me through, I have a shawl to cover him with!" Tossing it at Jareth when the front liners wouldn't let her through, she yelled. "Cover him with this!"

Jareth caught the expected wad of material, and snugly wrapped Tommy in it. His mother was by his side with tears of fear, and relief streaming down her face, touching her son all over his body with grateful hands as he drew breath after coughing breath, shivering from the cold water. "Oh, god, thank you! Thank you for saving my baby!"

"Perhaps you should be more careful of what you wish for," Jareth told the mother in an even tone. Her gaze whipped around to meet his with fearful regret. "You never know when one will be granted." Jareth rose to his feet, and excused himself from the hovering crowd. Taking Sarah gruffly by the elbow he began to lead her away in the direction they had been heading in.

"What's you're name?" Tommy's mother called out. "I want to do something for saving my son!"

"I just told you what to do," Jareth called back over his shoulder, not bothering to slow his pace. "That's all the thanks I need!"

"What did you tell her?" Sarah asked as he faced forward to steadily walk them away from the still shaken crowd. "Why would you hurt that boy only to save him?"

"I did nothing," Jareth stated with agitation, pausing to look down at her. "The boy fell in of his own accord." Then, he softened his tone somewhat, and his grip on her arm loosened. "But, I made sure he won't remember falling in the river, or nearly drowning."

"I'm sorry," Sarah stated in a low voice, diverting her eyes to the ground. "I just assumed that… well, when I heard the woman make her wish, and then the boy fell in, … I just…" Sarah raised her gaze to meet Jareth's, retaining his gaze steadily. "I apologize for jumping to conclusions."

"An honest mistake, I suppose," Jareth remarked airily, waving his hand nonchalantly. "I accept your apology, of course."

Sarah glanced back to see the mother hugging her son, removing her own light jacket to huddle it around her little boy as a rescue team finally came on sight. "She'll probably never make a wish again."

"I should be so lucky," Jareth grumbled lowly, then perked up once more. "Now, do you want to see your surprise, or should I simply take you home?"

"You actually have a surprise for me?" Sarah questioned, her tone laced with awe.

"Hard to believe, I know. Especially with all you've put me through. But, yes, I have a surprise for you."

"Show me," she voiced with anticipation, her eyes shining with wonder and suspense.

Jareth magically dried his clothes and hair as he led her to the far end of the river-walk, away from the mainstream crowd. "Close your eyes," he told her, taking hold of her by the shoulders. "Open them," he whispered, suddenly behind her with his arms securely around her waist. She opened her eye,s and gasped at finding herself standing upon the rooftop of a nearby high-rise building.

"Oh, wow," she breathed in awe, panning her line of vision along the riverfront. "You can see everything from up here."

"Not quite everything," he whispered by her ear. "But, you have the best view to watch the fireworks."

She leaned back against him, hugging his arms that encircled her waist with her own. "You do know that I'm not all that fond of high places, right?"

"Scared?" he taunted in her ear.

"A little, yea," she admitted. "Just don't let me go, okay?"

"That, I assure you, I have no intention of doing."

She craned her neck to look back and up at him quizzically when the first firework suddenly burst into the night sky, exploding in vibrant color before fizzling, and wafting into the air. Another one lit the sky before the first one had fully diminished. Completely enraptured by the nightly display, Sarah forgot all about his response, and the hint of promise that she had detected within it.

"They never set off enough purple ones," Sarah pouted after a few minutes worth of fireworks being set off. The very next firework was a huge star burst that filled the night sky in a brilliant shade of purple. Sarah gasped at the wonder of it, watching as the next one was also purple, and then the one after that. She laughed heartily, clapping her hands like an excited child. "I don't believe you actually did that!" she exclaimed, nearly jumping up and down in place. "But, I think that should do it for a purple running streak."

"If you say so," he smirked agreeably, allowing the display to continue without further interference from him.

During the finale, she literally jumped up and down, reveling in the booming, ear deafening explosions of color. When the final firework settled back to earth in ash and smoke, she turned and grabbed Jareth around the neck in a tight hug. Laughing along with her, he returned her gesture, spinning her off her feet for a couple of rounds on his heels before setting her back to the ground.

"This was so much fun!" she proclaimed, her face alit with excitement. "Thank you. This couldn't have been more perfect!" she twisted herself bodily in his arms, grabbing his wrists as he released her, and wrapped his arms around her as she leaned her back against his chest once more. "I wish we could stand like this all night and watch them over and over again."

"How about just twice more?" he offered, adjusting his arms around her waist after she let go of his wrists.

She took a long, deep, contemplative breath, then released it slowly. "I think I'd like that," she replied, resting her head back on his shoulder as the firework display started all over again, just for Sarah.

XxXxX

She turned in his arms to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck to clasp her fingers at is nape, under his long hair. The sky illuminated with purple, red, and green splashes of color at her back, but his eyes only reflected her own image back at her. "What are you thinking when you look at me like that?"

"Like what?" he asked simply enough, though his voice was tight with emotion. This was the longest he'd held her in his arms at any given length, without interruption, or mishap. She belonged here, pressed against his body, holding him, holding her. Relaxed, calm, beautiful.

"Like… it's the last time you'll ever see me again."

"I look upon you like that, do I?" he quipped with nonchalance, a small smirk on his lips, his brows raised curiously. He briefly wondered at how many times he'd thought that very thing while in her company, perhaps showing her his thoughts without realizing it.

"Not all the time," she told him, moving her arm to reach up and caress his cheek. "Just… sometimes." Her hand gently traced his jaw, her thumb stretched to lightly brush against his bottom lip. "Sometimes, it seems like forever when I'm with you," she whispered, her eyes following the motion of her thumb before rising to meet with his. "But, it's not. It's only a short moment, isn't it," she stated reflectively.

He swallowed hard, hoping she didn't notice. "Do you want forever, Sarah?"

Her eyes filled with uncertainty at his softly spoken question, breaking their eye contact to bow her head thoughtfully. She drew in a harrowing breath as she stared up into the starry sky, her one arm returned to her own side, her other hand slid from his face, briefly down his chest, and hung limply by her other side. "Nothing is forever, Jareth. Not even dreams." Her eyes filled with unshed tears as she stared up at him, silently imploring him to understand. Hoping that she hadn't just pushed him away to the point of never seeing him again.

He smiled patiently down at her, and cupped the side of her face in a gentle hand, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "And that is why, sometimes, I look upon you the way I do."

Jareth bent his head to hers, and placed his lips tenderly at the corner of her lips. She closed her eyes, and turned her head to meet those tender lips with her own. Everything became muted around her, as though time stood still for that one brief moment. Then, she felt as though she was falling, her mind spun like a whirlwind.

"Jareth, don't let me fall," she whispered, grabbing his jacket with fingers desperate to keep her balance.

"You have to fall for me to catch you," he whispered into her ear.

Sarah opened her eyes to find herself in her own bed, in her own room, in her own apartment. She huffed an exasperated breath, falling back to her pillow with an oomph. '_I hate when he does that_,' she thought, though knew those words weren't true. After all, it was their way of parting; without having to say goodbye.

Sunlight poured in through her window, and she stretched languidly, her hand brushing against something smooth and cool. Her lips curled into a secretive smile at seeing a crystal on the pillow next to her. Picking it up, she gazed into it, and smiled fully. It showed the fireworks display in Philadelphia, over and over again, with lots of purple ones added in the mix. Hugging it to her breast, she closed her eyes with a fond smile ghosting her lips.

"When we meet again, Jareth," she whispered quietly, then rose from her bed to start her day.


	5. Chapter 5

**I'd like to thank everyone for all the wonderful reviews and fave adds. I apologize for this being so late for being posted, but I ran into a problem... I lost the chapter and had to re-write it. I hope you enjoy!!!**

**Between The Stars **

**Chapter Five**

**August – At the beach** **– California**

She'd been staring at him since the game had begun, watching him play volleyball, and not thinking about why that one man in particular held her rapt attention among so many bronzed chests and muscled limbs. It was obvious, as far as Sarah was concerned, he was blonde, his hair was mid-length in a grunge style that often hung over his face in a boyish manner, his body was lean, and well muscled for his body type, her preferred body type, and he was golden tan. He had long arms and legs that made her salivate just thinking about what he would feel like wrapped around her with his body sliding against hers as they…

She snapped out of her private reverie, giving her head a curt shake. '_Not this time, Sarah_,' she reprimanded herself. '_This isn't 'find another loser boyfriend' time, this is 'try to figure out what the fuck is wrong with you' time._' But, still, her eyes wouldn't leave him as he displayed his agile prowess, lurching forward in a fluid motion to hit the ball successfully back over the net.

Her eyes became unfocused as her deeper thoughts pushed forward to the front of her mind, watching his movements, and on some level appreciating the view. '_I can't do this anymore_,' she reasoned with herself. '_It used to be so simple when I had them sign a contract._' She turned her face downward, letting her eyes half close lazily with contemplation. '_I don't even know why I stopped having the contracts._' She sighed deeply, reflectively. '_Because, they weren't fulfilling their means,' _she answered mentally_. 'Because, contracts didn't stop me from getting hurt._'

She took a long deep sigh, lifting her face into the sun, closing her eyes to relish its warmth. '_What is wrong with me? And, it has to be me, I've date so many… I should've met ' the one' by now… someone to share things with, to hold, and love, and…_' She sighed deeply, again, dropping her chin to her chest. '_I know he's out there, somewhere, waiting to find me. I can feel it,_' she mused, opening her eyes after leveling her chin, staring out over the ocean, aimlessly watching some seagulls dance in the waves at the surf. '_That's exactly how I feel right now,_' she remarked internally, regarding the seagulls. '_Rush in on quick little feet, only to turn and run like hell when the tide turns on you… heh, yea. That's exactly how I feel. Pointless, it's all pointless._'

The volleyball game ended with a sudden burst of cheers and boos, gaining Sarah's attention. All the players laughed good naturedly at having played a fun game, and then, her prime choice of man flesh started to make his way in her direction. She glanced around herself when she realized he was heading her way, looking for an unoccupied beach towel or blanket that might be laid out nearby somewhere, but there wasn't any, and Sarah felt a sharp twang of apprehension shoot straight up her spine. '_Oh, shit, he noticed me staring. Good going, Sarah._' And then her mind did a flip. '_Or… what if he's the one, hmm?_' She watched him draw closer with a pleasant expression on her face.

It wasn't until he got within a few feet that she could see his tell-tale angular features, the defined sweep of angled brows, and all too familiar mismatched eyes. A broad smile graced her lips as her eyes filled with recognition. "You have a tracking device on me, don't you?" Sarah joked as Jareth reached hearing range.

"Not at all," he grinned in response, sliding his body casually to sit next to her on the beach towel. "That's what I have crystals for," he added in a lower, deeper voice from by her side.

She laughed lightly. "So, you '_are_' stalking me," she insinuated with a grin, feeling comforted of all her worries just with him being there.

"Stalking…" he breathed with exaggeration. "is such a harsh word," he replied whimsically, briefly looking out over the ocean, then turned his gaze back to Sarah. "Would you like me to leave?" he asked with a frown, noticing the strange expression on her features as she looked at him.

"Don't you dare!" she exclaimed with exuberance, grabbing his forearm for emphasis before settling back again. "I'm… glad you're here," she told him sincerely, tucking a lock of hair behind an ear as she turned her face toward him.

"Are you?" he asked with pure curiosity.

"Yea," she replied, smiling weakly before turning her head to look her toes. "I am," she stated softly, watching her toes as she idly buried them into the sand. "Oh, thanks for the crystal!" she exclaimed, raising her eyes to meet his once more. "I think I watch those fireworks at least once a day!" she stated laughingly.

"You're welcome," he replied, smiling warmly. He sensed something wasn't quite right. Her eyes didn't show the normal luster he'd come to cherish whenever they shared time together, and she seemed… reserved, though her smile was genuine when she looked upon him. "So, which man is evil prince charming this time?" he joked casually, jutting his head in the general direction of the beach full of men.

"No evil princes this time," she answered demurely, her countenance sobering, though she tried to chuckle with a weak smile. "Just me." She looked over at him with a level gaze. "Guess that puts a damper on you being here, huh? There's no one to rescue me from."

"What happened, Sarah?" he asked somberly, not liking how her eyes lacked their normal light.

She shrugged noncommittally, and stared out over the ocean, through the mulling crowd of passers by. "I don't know," she replied quietly, wrapping her arms around her drawn knees. "I just needed a break from all the drama, and bullshit that seemed to come with every boyfriend I've dated." She dropped her gaze unseeingly to the sand at her feet. "I'm tired of being disappointed, I guess," she added, raising her gaze back to his with a small smile.

"Come now," he jested in a light tone, nudging her elbow with his. "You can't possibly be bored with champaign and strawberries, traveling around your world on yachts, and all that."

"No," she smiled wistfully. "I'm not tired of all that." Her smile slowly faded. "I'm just tired of… feeling alone all the time."

"You could have call me, I've told you that," Jareth stated quietly, briefly touching under her chin with his fingertips to make her look at him.

"That's just it," she stated softly, her tone full of thoughtfulness. "You're the only one I '_don't_' call, and yet…" she chuckled thoughtfully, dipping her head to break their gazes. "This is going to sound silly, but," She looked back up at him. "You're the only one who's always there when I needed someone the most."

Something changed in her eyes as she looked over at him, something he'd never seen within her before. The need for acceptance, to belong, and feel complete. "Well," he announced abruptly. "I think you've greatly exaggerated things. However, I'm willing to spend the day with you, and keep you company if you so desire."

"Oh, I '_so_' desire that very much," she replied, then smirked as she looked away, brushing aside a few wayward thoughts from her mind. She took a deep, cleansing breath, to clear her mind. '_This is Jareth, dumb ass,_' she berated herself. '_Don't dance with fire or you'll get burned._' Then on the heels of that thought, '_Don't do anything to lose him, Sarah, he's too perfect to lose him completely._'

She whipped her head around to meet his eyes with suddenness. '_Is he the one?_' she thought, feeling a rush of warmth flood her entire being at the thought. '_No_,' she dissuaded. '_He only comes here when he's bored. I just happen to always be in need of a friend when he shows up, nothing more. Stick to rule one, Sarah, don't mess up the only good thing in your life._'

She smiled suddenly and took a deep breath. "We can join in a game of volleyball if you want," she suggested openly, her previous melancholy pushed aside as she gathered herself to stand up.

Jareth had been more than attentive to the conflicting emotions he'd seen flit across her features for that brief moment, and his heart hammered in his chest in response. '_Has she finally realized why I come to her?_' he thought hopefully, then saw her shake her head with more than just a mental thought just before she made her suggestion to play the game. '_Oh, Sarah, why can't you see me when I'm right before your eyes?_'

"Sarah," he called in a sudden, clipped tone, making her pause in an awkward crouching position to half turn and look back at him. He reached out and grabbed her arm just under her shoulder, and lightly pulled her off balance, causing her to sprawl bodily across his legs. "It wouldn't seem right if you hadn't fallen into my lap, first," he grinned down at her, his eyes shining mischievously.

"Oh, Jareth!" she chastised lightly, lightly slapping his chest playfully as she clambered to get back up. He helped her to her feet with a broad smile, then rose to stand himself, brushing the sand off the back of his legs.

"I have a better idea," Jareth informed her as she patiently waited for him. He straightened his back, and looked at her directly. "If you're up to it, that is," he suggested with a broad grin.

She slightly tilted her head to the side with curiosity, and then noticed the challenging expression in his eyes. Lifting her chin accordingly, she met his eyes head on. "And what would that be?"

"Parasailing," he answered in a deep, challenging tone.

A conspiratorial smile spread across her lips, her eyes alit with daring. "You're on!"

XxXxX

"I'll race you to the top!" Sarah called out after starting to take the wooden steps two at a time, a hand on each rail to block him from getting past without physically moving her. Her foot was hovering over the deck as she tossed her head over her shoulder to look behind her, then squealed in surprise as a steely arm wrapped around her waist to spin her around, and end up pressed flush against his body with her feet firmly on the deck. "That's cheating!" she accused, laughing as she stepped back from his loose embrace.

"I don't cheat," Jareth corrected indignantly. "I won fair and square."

"No, you didn't," she sing-sung with a smile over her shoulder as she slid open the glass doors that led into the beach house. "You cheated."

"How could I cheat when there were no rules in the first place?" Jareth questioned as he followed her inside.

"You used your magic," she replied, sparing him a brief glance as she continued through the spacious room toward the kitchen. "That's cheating."

"Since when?" he quipped, bringing himself up short to look at her indignantly.

"Since… always," she laughed back at him. "But, I'll let you have this one since there's obviously a glitch in the ruling system." She sucked in a lungful of air with surprise when he was suddenly in front of her, his hands on her shoulders to prevent her from fully slamming into him bodily.

"Does it bother you when I use my magic?" he asked curiously. '_Is that why she remains elusive?_' he asked himself. '_Is it my magic, a small part of who I am that she can't compete with, that holds her back from accepting me completely?_'

"Only when you use it to cheat!" she laughed good naturedly, stepping out of his light grasp. "I'm going to shower and change," she announced, quickly changing the subject as she headed towards a set of wide, flowing stairs that led to the upper level. She paused on the third step, her hand on the polished rail, and looked back at him. "You'll still be here when I come back down, won't you?"

He clearly heard the uncertainty, the hope, in her voice with her question. "Why wouldn't I be?" he asked simply, not sure if he was satisfied with her answer regarding his magic or not.

"Because, you said you'd spend the day with me," she answered carefully. "And…" she glanced towards the large, slightly tinted windows behind him. "The sun will be setting soon." She looked back at him, waiting with bated breath for his reply.

She'd had so much fun with him while parasailing. Then, they had laughed and shared funny stories from their pasts over a late lunch before he '_persuaded_' a couple to let them use their jet skis. Sarah had been surprised and overwhelmed repeatedly at how agile he was, how much fun he could be, how his laughter wrapped around her insides like soft silken strands, making her feel… complete for the first time in her life.

Jareth hadn't planned on staying in the Aboveground after sunset, but as she looked upon him with such deep, hope filled eyes, there was no way he could leave just yet. "I'll stay for awhile longer, if that's what you desire," he answered casually. The brilliant smile she bestowed upon him, just before continuing her ascent, made his heart skip a beat.

She'd been exceptional company all afternoon. Her prowess at trying new things had impressed him greatly. The shrill pitch of her voice when she screamed with excitement as she hovered high above the water while parasailing had had his heart beating faster than normal. The way she delicately placed a hand upon his arm, chest, or leg as she laughed while he shared things from his past made his breath catch in his throat. The way she smiled up at him, her eyes shining like gems twisted his gut into a jumble of knots.

He leisurely turned to face the huge windows, watching all the brilliant colors of sunset streak across the ocean and sky as the sun dipped below the horizon. '_I'm doomed_,' he thought remorsefully, taking a long, deep sigh as he slipped his hands into the unfamiliar pockets of his short trousers. '_I've given her my heart, and I have no recourse._'

When Jareth had first encountered Sarah at the Halloween Ball he had been overwhelmed at how readily his emotions had flooded his senses. He had delighted in her company, and had purposely infiltrated himself into her life with the hope that she would, at some point, be waiting for him, and ask to return with him. Today was such a day, but he realized as she shared things from her past that he remained nothing more than a fantasy. He was her knight in shining armor, a magical king from another world, someone she adored yet accepted that he would leave after a short time.

His heart constricted in his chest at the thought of returning without her, yet again. But, he couldn't bring himself to ask her to join him. He couldn't make himself tell her his true intentions, or share with her how his heart beat stronger whenever she was with him. Her request for him to stay longer both filled him with joy and regret. Joy for the opportunity to extend their moment in time together, and regret for knowing that she would let him go when he decided to leave.

XxXxX

Sarah stripped off her sandy, damp clothes, removing the bikini bathing suit she had on underneath, and stepped into the shower stall. With washrag and soap in hand, she lathered herself up liberally before standing directly under the warm spray. Closing her eyes, she raked her fingers through her hair as the water soaked into her scalp, and ran down her long tresses. The image of Jareth laughingly waving up at her as she sailed in the air came to the back of her eyes, causing her to giggle in remembrance. She always felt so alive, excited, and anxious all at once whenever she was with Jareth.

Then, her smile faded at the thought that he would simply disappear again, returning to his own world, his own life, leaving her behind to muddle through what was becoming a hum-drum existence. '_No,_' she chastised mentally, giving her head a healthy shake as she applied shampoo to her hair. '_I'm not going to think about that._' She lightly scrubbed her scalp with her nails, making sure to get all the salt water and sand out. '_He only comes here to get away once in a while_,' she told herself. '_I'm just one of a few people he trusts to keep his secrets, and have some fun, nothing more._'

She bit at her bottom lip as her eyes swelled with tears, her heart constricted so tight that she thought it would stop beating. '_He doesn't want you like that, Sarah,_' she reprimanded. '_Stop trying to mess up the best thing you'll ever get out of him. You can't keep him, and you know it! He doesn't want you for keeps, he just… he just doesn't._'

Not wanting to make him wait too long, or risk him changing his mind and leave before she returned downstairs, she ended her shower, and made quick work with her hair and clean clothes. Pausing just long enough to peer at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, she smiled weakly at herself. '_Don't bother with make up_,' she told herself, giving her appearance a critical once over. '_I'm slightly red from too much sun anyway._' Taking a deep, calming breath she pushed aside her inner turmoil, and turned to rejoin Jareth with a lightness in her step and a smile on her face.

XxXxX

"Oh my god," Sarah exclaimed as they neared the entertainments along the Boardwalk. "I love these things!" she continued enthusiastically, pointing towards a gaming booth with stuffed prizes hanging all over the ceiling. "I want you to try this," she told Jareth enthusiastically, grabbing his hand to pull him along. "If you hit the center three times, you get a prize!"

"I'll give you whatever prize you desire, just name it," Jareth returned, not enthused at this concept at all.

"No, seriously, I'd like to see you try this."

"I am being serious," he reiterated indignantly. "Name your prize, and you'll have it within seconds."

She breathed a full breath, accepting the fact that he wasn't going to play the game. Which, granted, was a lot to ask she supposed. He was a king after all, and, he had magic at his fingertips. Why would he be interested in a mundane thing like a stupid carnival game of skill and chance when there was nothing to gain from it? Hiding her disappointment, she laughed up at him with feigned cheerfulness. "How about we get some funnel cake instead, then?" she offered appeasingly.

Jareth had seen the disappointment that underlined her smile, and it pained him to see it. She asked very little of him at any given time, and this, for some reason unbeknownst to him, was important to her. He felt as though he'd just place himself on the long list of those who have made her unhappy, something he'd secretly sworn he would never do.

"Well?" he voiced with sudden impatience. "Name your prize so I know what it is I'm tossing things at."

She stopped short to look back at him, her eyes filled with disbelieve at first, then a genuine smile graced her lips as she grabbed his hand once more to lure him closer to the game stand. "I'll pick something after you win," she beamed up at him with complete confidence, glowing with excitement.

He glanced down at her, and felt his heart constrict. '_After I win_,' he thought. Her words of confidence filled him with more emotion than he cared to admit to having. He paid the young man in the stand the fee, and was handed three dusty, lumpy, little bags. He couldn't believe he was doing this, he contemplated, as he tossed the bean bags between his hands to get the feel of them. Then, singled one out into his right palm.

"Oh, no magic!" Sarah stipulated suddenly, causing Jareth to look over at her sharply. "It's kind of pointless if you use magic," she added lamely, shrugging with uncertainty as he blatantly stared down at her.

He scoffed indignantly, briefly turned his head away from her, then returned his eye contact. "No magic," he quipped indignantly. Sarah held her breath as she stared up at him with uncertainty. He breathed deeply, focused his attention to the target, pulled his arm back, and let the bean bag fly with a mighty throw.

It took every ounce of will power that Sarah possessed to not jump up and down when he hit the bull's eye. Forcibly refrained herself from throwing her arms around his neck in jubilation when he hit it a second time. By the third hit to the center of the target, she couldn't contain herself any longer, and threw herself at him while squealing in delight at him winning her a prize.

"Let that be a lesson to you," he growled into her ear as she hugged him bodily, wrapping his arms around her back to hold her close a moment longer. "To never underestimate what I am capable of." She lowered her heels back to the ground, and looked up at him warily, not sure if he was really upset, or not. Then, he smiled at her, and her fears were relieved. "Choose your prize, Sarah."

"You choose one," she told him with excitement. "It's only fair," she added. "After all, you were the one who won."

'_Not yet I haven't_,' he thought, staring at how she looked up at him. '_But, I think I'm getting closer._' Jareth scanned the selection of trivial objects hanging by cords, when his eyes settled upon one in particular. "I'll have that one."

"You need to hit the target nine times in a row to win that one," the young man behind the booth informed Jareth in a bored tone.

"Do I now?" Jareth asked, tilting his chin to one side to stare menacingly at the boy.

"But, nobody ever gets it," the boy stated suddenly, reaching up to unhook Jareth's selection. "So, here. Have a good time on the boardwalk, and thanks for playing."

"You cheated, didn't you?" Sarah accused in a whispered voice as they walked away from the booth. "You '_made_' him give you that!"

"Yes, I did," Jareth admitted arrogantly with a pleased smile on his lips. "Your prize, my Lady."

Sarah suddenly felt humbled as she took the stuffed creature from his hand. '_He actually won this for me,_' she thought dumbly. '_And, didn't use magic to do it. Well, mostly anyhow._' She glanced up at him, knowing that he probably saw how affected she was at his gift. '_Stop it. You're going to ruin a good time and make him leave._' She smiled suddenly, and looked down at the fuzzy thing in her hands. "Any idea what it's supposed to be?" she asked in a light tone, flicking the light, stringy purple fluff of hair on its head with her fingertips.

He took it from her to examine it again. "I believe it's supposed to be an Oogle," he replied, handing it back to her.

"A what?" she questioned, staring at it blankly.

He looked over at her with confusion at first, then his brow smoothed. "Ah, that's right," he quipped with recollection. "You somehow missed that entire section of my Labyrinth, didn't you?" He pointed at the stuffed thing in her hands when she looked back at him curiously. "It's an Oogle."

"Oh," she voiced, staring down at the soft fluffy, wispy haired, long limbed, '_thing_' in her hands. "These things really exist?"

"Well," he drawled with contemplation. "They have longer noses," he pointed out objectively, as they began to slowly stroll along. "And, their chins aren't so pointy as that. They have four arms, not two, and a tail. But, yes, I would say it's close enough to be called an Oogle."

For some reason, him identifying the thing made it seem even more personal. "I don't know what to say," she stated softly, hugging it to her breast as she looked up at him.

Jareth leaned over to look pointedly at the thing in her arms, then stood straight again. "Thank you, is usually customary."

She stared up at him for a good full minute, her fingers idly caressing the 'Oogle' he'd won for her. "Thank you," she whispered heartfelt.

Jareth watched her expression closely as she stared up at him, then frowned ever so slightly at the sincerity he'd heard in her voice when she spoke her words. He wasn't sure of what had just happened, but it seemed as though her heart was definitely changing towards him.

"Come," he stated with a smile, throwing his arm casually over her shoulders. "Let's have something to eat."

XxXxX

"… and before I realized what I'd done," Jareth was saying, telling Sarah another story from when he'd first become the goblin king. "The entire sky was full of the blasted things, and I haven't been able to get rid of them since!"

Sarah capsized against his side in a fit of laughter, tears seeped from her eyes in her mirth. "Oh my god," she expelled breathlessly. "I wish I could've seen the expression on your face!"

"It wasn't very pleasant, I can assure you," he retorted lightly, glancing down at her with fondness. After they had stuffed themselves with funnel cake, fries, and a pizza, they had stopped in an Irish pub for a few ales, then wandered back to the beach to stare at the full moon as it passed over the ocean, sharing more stories from their pasts, and simply enjoying each other's company.

Jareth found himself retelling things he had done, mistakes he had made, things he'd never repeated to any other living being, just to hear her laugh, and reveled in the warmth that consumed him every time she slapped his knee playfully with breathless bouts of laughter.

"Ah, shit!" Sarah exclaimed waywardly, bringing her laughter under control for the umpteenth time that night. "I'm going to have pains from all this laughing if you don't stop!" She told him, dabbing at the corners of her eyes. "I haven't laughed like this is so long, I forgot what it felt like."

"I'll make sure to make you laugh more often, then," he stated pleasantly, draping his arm over her shoulders after she righted herself into a sitting position next to him.

"Oh, look!" she exclaimed suddenly, pointing out over the ocean. "A shooting star!" She closed her eyes, and held her breath before starting to chuckle lightly. "I guess it's silly for me to wish upon it with you sitting here, huh?" she asked, looking over at him with her eyes full of life.

"Not at all," he replied, smiling back at her. "I always wish upon a fallen star," Jareth stated sincerely, looking back at the moon lit sky as the star blazed out of sight.

"Really? Why?" she asked dumbly, then shook her head. "I mean, you have your own magic, what would you need to make wishes for?"

"I can't grant my own wishes," he answered her informatively. "So, I wish upon fallen stars with the hope that someone would grant me one for myself."

"Oh." She looked at him with eyes full of wonder and amazement. "What do you wish for, Jareth?" she asked before she could stop the words from leaving her mouth.

'_For you to love me_,' he thought, his eyes showing his emotions clearly as he dipped his head down to gently touch her lips with his. "Something I can't have." He rested his forehead upon hers, and smiled wistfully before pulling himself back to sit upright again.

"No, wait," she whispered, splaying her fingers along the sides of his face to pull him close for another kiss. He gave in to her gentle persuasion, brushing his lips over hers once again. She inhaled deeply at he sensation his lips caused over hers, her gut tightened as her insides melted with an all consuming heat. She pulled him in closer, twisting her body as she tilted her head to the other side to deepen their kiss.

It was intimate, heated, like nothing she'd ever felt before, and he hadn't even slipped his tongue past her lips yet. She moaned deeply, and wrapped her arms around his head while pulling him with her as she fell backwards to the sand. He shifted his body to hover over hers, refusing to lay upon her completely. He dared to slip his tongue past her lips, knowing it might be his undoing to fully taste her. He groaned deep in his throat when her tongue met his to begin an all familiar dance that ignited the flames of arousal in both of them.

He was losing himself to her, and he knew it. She held him so close, her lips and hands were so inviting, he couldn't think of anything else that mattered. Giving in to all temptation, he slowly lowered his body to rest upon hers, his lips left her mouth to trail hotly down her neck just as a wave of cold, ocean water splashed up and around them! Sarah screamed in shock as the cold water doused every inch of her body, soaking her clothes and hair through and through. Jareth was on his feet within a magical blink, still not avoiding getting wet himself.

"Oh my god, that's fucking cold!" Sarah exclaimed, scrambling to her feet as the next wave surged towards her. "How the hell did we get so caught up to not feel the incoming tide?" she asked with confusion, looking at her feet as she stood in ankle deep waves.

"I must have used my magic," Jareth replied, feeling as dumbfounded as Sarah, looking around with his own amount of confusion. Facing Sarah he stepped closer to her, taking her by the shoulders to extend his magic to dry her clothes and hair. "I apologize. I never intended to take advantage of you like some mortal, thoughtless, …" He shook his head at finding himself completely flustered and without words.

"It's okay," she smiled up at him, laughing lightly as she cupped the sides of his face with both her hands. "I have a feeling someone else answered my wish, and prevented us from making a big mistake."

Her words pierced through him as though he'd been skewered. '_A mistake_,' his mind repeated, his entire being reeling that she still didn't want him, despite the signs that he had obviously mistranslated. He stepped back from her, letting his hands drop from her shoulders like leaden balls at the end of his arms. "Of course," he nearly sneered, turning his hurt and disappointment into anger. "Then, by your wish, I'll leave you."

"Jareth, no! Wait!" she cried out, lurching forward to grab his arm before he could vanish. "I wished for a sign… telling me what to do… when I saw that shooting star!" she explained quickly, taking harrowing breaths as tears filled her eyes. "I've been so confused lately," she continued when he stayed to listen. "All I've ever wanted was to fall in love and be happy, and…" Her tears fell unhindered, streaking down her face over both cheeks. "All I get is heartache, and problems. And then you come along, and I feel like…" She stopped speaking and turned her head to brush away her embarrassing tears.

"Yes?" he prompted, tilting his head with curiosity. "Makes you feel… what?"

She wiped at one last tear from her face before looking up at him again. "Like I'm in a fairy tale, where everything is so perfect, it's scary." She chuckled without humor. "I'm sorry, I know it sounds stupid, especially knowing who you are, and where you're from, but… that's how you make me feel, and… I didn't mean to get caught up in it, I'm sorry," she apologized again. "I know you come here to get away sometimes, I honestly didn't mean to mess up things."

"I was the one who kissed you, remember?" he pointed out, his heart being soothed by her words. He had misunderstood her completely, now it was time to let her know how much he wanted her.

She laughed lightly at his comment, bowing her head briefly. "Yea, I know. But, I also know that you'll go back home, and we never say goodbye, so we can meet again." She paused, stepping closer to him. "We can still meet again, can't we?" she asked hopefully. "I've been thinking lately that I've been the one who ruined more than one good time, and simply blamed someone else for it. But, I don't want to ruin what we have, Jareth. Please, say that you'll come back, again."

And there it was. Her explanation for everything. She still didn't believe that he truly wanted her. She thought herself as a pastime that he dallied with every so often. She wasn't ready to believe that her fairy tale life stood right in front of her, that all she had to do was believe in it. Jareth reached out to cup the side of her face, caressing her cheek with his thumb.

"I'm certain that the tide coming in on us wasn't a sign in answer to your wish, Sarah." He let his hand drop, hoping that that was enough of a hint to work through her mind as she contemplated things later, as he knew she would do. "And, be assured that we will meet again."

She wanted to ask when, where, and how… but, they'd never planned their encounters before, so she refrained from seeming too anxious, and simply smiled back at him as he faded into thin air. She took a deep breath after he was gone, feeling relieved that she hadn't completely messed up everything. If he said they would meet again, then they would, and that was good enough for her.

Turning away from the incoming waves, she bent in half to pick up her shoes and the stuffed Oogle, that had somehow avoided getting caught up in the tide, and shook them free of dry sand. Glancing once more out over the ocean at the full moon, she slowly strolled towards the beach house with a fond smile on her lips.


	6. Chapter 6

**Between The Stars **

**Chapter Six**

**October – Halloween Ball** **– Location Unknown**

The gleaming, black, stretch limo slowly came to a stop at the VIP entrance to the theatre. The chauffeur got out, walked around the front to the appropriate door near the back of the vehicle, and opened it to allow the occupant to exit. Everyone in the line craned their necks to get a glimpse of who it could be pulling up in style, wondering if it was someone famous, or perhaps a social elite to be recognized. Even the doorman paused in receiving the tickets from guests to lend an eye for the unexpected royale.

The woman placed her foot delicately on the curb, accepting the chauffeur's assistance with a gloved hand as she unfolded from inside. With both feet firmly in place, she straightened her back to glance at her surroundings with emerald eyes, her long dark hair hung over her shoulders and down her back in thick waves and curls. She smoothed the layered folds of her elaborate gown, caressed the velvet material of her bodice so that it covered her bosom perfectly, then straightened the lace at the end of her sleeves.

"I'm nervous, Frank," she whispered in a small, unsteady voice, looking up at her ex boyfriend who had, ironically, been her date the first time she'd bumped into Jareth. "What if he's not here?"

"He better be here," Frank stated in a mildly disgruntled tone, moving to stand in front of Sarah to block her from the onlookers in line. "He got what I wanted."

"I'm sorry," she offered lamely, giving Frank an apologetic smile.

"Hey," Frank remarked with a light chuckle, touching his fingertips under her chin. "I knew he was my replacement the minute I saw the guy." He shrugged carelessly with a small grin. "I really did love you, you know?" he paused, then added, "Still do a little bit."

"Frank, I…"

"Don't make excuses, Sarah. This guy had your heart at hello, and it might sound corny as shit, but it's the truth." Frank stepped back one pace, and bowed properly before her with a big grin on his face. "Let's make everyone really wonder who you are, heh?" he chuckled, reaching out to fix Sarah's shawl over her shoulders.

Sarah laughed despite everything, and stepped up to give him a hug. "Thanks, Frank."

"Hey, if he's not here, I'll be parked right over there," he stated, nodding his head towards the VIP parking lot. "I'll wait for you, just in case."

She bestowed him a kind smile, fixed her skirts once more, repositioned her drawstring purse at her wrist, then lifted her chin with regal airs. Stepping away from the limo, she approached the doorman with shoulders squared, and steady strides. Smiling internally at hearing the curious whisperings of 'who is she' coming from the long line waiting to get inside.

"I must say," Colin, the vampire doorman dressed as a vampire greeted in a smooth voice. "That, it is a most welcoming sight to see you again, my Lady," he finished, inclining his head respectfully, extending his hand to take Sarah's admittance ticket. "Will the lady's companion be joining her once more this evening?"

"Oh, wow," Sarah replied, flustered. "I can't believe you remembered us from last year." She chuckled lightly at his polite smile. "No, sir," she replied, getting into character once more. "I hope to be joined by another this evening."

"Then, I shall delay you no longer, my Lady," he replied in a silken voice, handing her the stub. "Perhaps, you shall be favored once more by a royal guest, as you've been previously?"

Sarah met the man's eyes with purposeful intent, noticing for the first time how they seemed different than an average mortal's. "Perhaps I shall," she answered slowly in a bewildered voice, stepping away from him to enter the theatre. The strange man at the door was soon forgotten as she stepped into the receiving hall of the theatre.

She breathed in the plush atmosphere of the old theatre, glancing appreciatively at the gold and red décor of the walls, the plush carpet that led into the ball room, and the dazzling chandelier's that gave off a soft illumination.

Fixing her shawl over her shoulders, Sarah entered the main ballroom with only one thing on her mind. '_Please, Jareth, be here tonight._'

XxXxX

Sarah stood in the midst of the crowd, intently watching the dancers on the dance floor for any sign of Jareth. But, they were playing the last score for the ballroom theme, and so far she hadn't seen so much as had a glimpse of him. She pursed her lips to fight the disappointment that threatened to overwhelm her. She thought for sure that he would attend the Halloween Ball, as he had done the previous year, only to find herself feeling like a fool. '_He never said_ 'when' _they would meet again_.'

With a steadying breath, she raised her chin, settling her eyes upon a woman with long black hair who happened past Sarah more than once during the evening. Shrugging it off as coincidence, she continued her perusal of the crowd with hope still in her heart.

After the ballroom dancing ended, and the music changed with more variety, she pushed from her standing spot, and made her way through an unyielding crowd, not even caring that her shawl had fallen from her shoulders to be swallowed by the throng of people as she squeezed her way towards the exit.

She felt numb with disappointment as she reached the lobby of the theatre, an emotion that had been a constant companion for so long that Sarah wasn't sure what to do anymore. She thought for sure he would be there that night, had counted on him for the first time since knowing him, and he let her down. Blindly, she pushed forward, knowing that she wouldn't be able to hold back the tears for much longer, knowing that, somehow, it was her own fault that she felt this way. She accidentally bumped into someone, never glancing up to so much as say excuse me as she rushed for the exit.

Salina frowned thoughtfully as she watched Sarah head for the doors to leave. Bumping into her had been extremely easy, though what Salina had felt from the mortal upon the brief contact was highly disturbing, and she knew exactly what had happened to the poor mortal. '_He touched her heart_.'

"Madam," Salina called after Sarah, magically having Sarah's dropped shawl in her hands. "Madam," she called out again, frowning as Sarah was quickly reaching the doors. "Colin, stop her!" Salina whispered with urgency, knowing the vampire would hear her. "The woman dressed as royalty."

"My Lady," Colin gasped in an urgent tone, rushing to meet the woman as she drew closer to the exit. "Is all well with thee?"

Sarah stopped short to stare blankly at the strange eyed doorman as he blocked her way. Forcing coherent thought to return to her brain she shook her head, meaning to side step past him, and continue out. "I have to leave. It was a mistake coming here."

"But, my Lady," Colin insisted, lurching to her side in a graceful, fluid motion to touch her elbow. "Please, wait," he cajoled, using his vampiric prowess to detain the woman.

Sarah paused, turned her face around to stare at the man once more, and spoke the first thing that came to her mind. "You have no power over me."

Colin backed away from her as though burned, brushing his fingers against his trousers as he stared wide eyed at the mortal female. She'd spoken her phrase in a whispered voice that most mortals would have never even heard, but the effect was the same as though she had shouted them clearly. "I beg your pardon," Colin apologized, inclining his head reverently. "I meant no offense, my Lady."

Sarah continued to stare at him, having no idea what had prompted her to say those words, and was even more confused at his reaction to them. "You're not what you seem, are you?" Sarah asked in a low spoken voice.

"Alas, I am not," he answered, raising his gaze to her face, though avoided meeting her eyes directly. "And, apparently, neither are you."

Sarah frowned in response, shaking her head slightly in her confusion. "What do you mean? Why would you say that?" she asked, just as a woman approached her from behind.

"My Lady," Salina addressed, lightly tapping Sarah on the shoulder for her attention. "You seemed to have dropped this," she added, pretending to be out of breath as though she had chased after her to return her shawl.

"Oh," Sarah voiced with surprise, seeing her shawl in the woman's hand. "You didn't have to do that," she voiced, completely flustered at the woman's kindness. "But, thank you." Sarah looked up at the woman for the first time, and recognized her as the black haired woman who had been passing by her all night. Sarah looked at her with sharper scrutiny, and gasped slightly at noticing the similar character traits as Jareth's. The aristocratic profile with high cheek bones, slender chin, straight nose, and elegantly swept eyebrows. All of which could be mimicked with makeup and plucking, except for the ethereal glow of her amber eyes that told of something magical within. "Oh," Sarah sounded in surprise, completely thrown at the concept of Jareth not being the only one of his kind, though she had no idea why.

"Are you alright?" Salina asked, watching how the woman paled before her eyes.

Sarah took a step back, dividing her line of sight from the woman to the doorman, then back again. "I'm sorry, I… I have nothing to offer in payment for your generosity. I was leaving, actually. I… I have to leave, now."

Salina knew by her reaction that Sarah had recognized her true nature, and only had Jareth as a basis for comparison. The poor woman thought she had to pay her for her kindness! This was laughable to Salina, and she would have laughed if the woman hadn't been so distraught over things she didn't understand.

"Why would you wish to leave?" Salina asked sweetly, causing Sarah to look at her with uncertainty. "There is still time for what you…" Salina broke off her sentence as soon as she felt the magical presence of a fae king, and watched as Sarah's eyes shifted to the very spot that Salina knew him to be standing in.

Color rose high in Sarah's cheeks at the sight of Jareth in his Goblin King gala, her breath caught in her throat while flashes of heat consumed her entire being. The pulse at her neck throbbed boldly against her skin, causing Colin to unconsciously lick at his lips. "Excuse me," she stated in a trance like voice, shoving the shawl into Salina's hands as she moved past her.

Sarah met Jareth within a few paces, holding his eye contact intently. "I couldn't find you," she told him lamely, feeling as though everything had been worth while as she stared up at him.

"I was detained with business," he replied, openly observing her dress with an appreciative eye. "You were expecting to dance with a king, perhaps?" he asked in a light tone, seeming relaxed and casual as always, though, he knew by Salina's frantic summons, and the reaction Sarah herself was having to his presence, that the events of this night would determine both their fates.

"Something's happening to me, Jareth," she confided in him in a whispered voice. "I've never felt so…."

"Sarah," he interrupted, stepping forward with a regretful expression before she could say any more. "I must return right away. I only came here so you wouldn't think that I've forgotten you."

"Oh," she voiced, diverting her eyes to the plush carpet as disappointment once again flooded her entire being. She felt more foolish now than she had before seeing him. She raised her gaze by pure will, meeting his eyes with a forced casual expression. "We can talk some other time, then," she stated, plastering a fake smile of reassurance on her face.

Jareth easily saw through her façade as she tried to fool him into thinking that his rejection didn't matter. But, he was fully aware of what had happened to her, and felt just as anxious at how this night may end. "Sarah." He raised a hand between them, a crystal suddenly appeared at his fingertips. "This, is no ordinary crystal," he stated sincerely, meeting her gaze intently. "This one is very personal." He handed it out for her to take. "I've never given a crystal such as this to anyone before, ever."

Her face was fully flushed as her eyes drifted to the fog filled orb he offered. Her hand slowly reached out to take it from him, feeling a bead of sweat form on her brow as she did so. "What am I supposed to do with it?"

"Hold it for me," he answered, his voice far from light and carefree. "I'll return in a short while to collect it from you. Consider it a guarantee of my return."

She let her gaze drop to stare at the enchanted orb in her hands, and felt a rush of air flutter across her face. Lifting her gaze, he was gone.

"I would be most careful of what you wish for while holding that," Salina warned in a pleasant voice, coming up behind Sarah to peer over her shoulder at the object in her hands. "It contains Jareth's magic in its purest form."

Sarah glanced peripherally at the fae woman, then back at the orb in her hands, becoming fascinated by the wisps of swirling mists within it. Salina reached around Sarah to place a delicate, gloved hand over it to block Sarah's vision. "I wouldn't gaze into it either, it can absorb your thoughts." She removed her hand when Sarah raised her gaze to eye level, and slowly walked to Sarah's front. "I'm shocked that he didn't give you any instruction," she admitted openly, then her eyes gleamed mischievously. "In fact, it's almost as if he '_wants_' you to make a wish."

"I wish I knew what he wanted," Sarah stated daringly, meeting Salina's mystical gaze with her own steady one.

"Oh, you are a daring little minx, aren't you," Salina purred with appreciation. "I hope you're prepared for the answer you will get." She briefly directed her gaze at the crystal, urging Sarah to look upon it once more.

Sarah drew in a sharp intake of breath at seeing herself during the more personal times she had shared with Jareth during the past year; them dancing at the previous year's Halloween Ball with her smiling up at him with the lights reflecting in her eyes, making them seem as mystical as his could be. It showed the silhouetted image of when he held her in the moonlight the night she'd cried in his arms. Then, showed them laying together on a blanket at Beltane, his arms wrapped around her back with her head upon his chest. Her standing within his embrace with her head back against his shoulder while they watched the fireworks in Philadelphia, and lastly, the kiss he had given her on the beach after they had seen a shooting star.

"Why would he give me a crystal with my own memories in it?"

"They aren't just your memories, now are they?" Salina prompted suggestively. "You wanted to know what he wants, and you have been given an answer, my mortal friend." Salina paced around to Sarah's back to whisper in her ear from behind. "Do you want to know why you were never an ordinary girl, Sarah Williams?" Sarah tilted her face just enough to see the fae woman peripherally. "Because, you have stolen the heart of a king, a very powerful king, who holds magic at his fingertips." Salina reached around Sarah and placed her hand over the crystal once more. "It was never about you saving the baby, my dear Lady. It was about Jareth keeping what he couldn't have." Salina pressed her lips very close to Sarah's ear. "You were the prize that Jareth wanted to keep for himself."

"Why would you say such a thing?" Sarah whispered warily, though something deep within her knew it to be true. "If he wanted me as much as you claim, then he wouldn't have let me go home."

"Wouldn't he?" Salina countered objectively, tilting her face slightly to look at Sarah's profile. "Are you certain?"

"Why should I believe anything you say?" Sarah asked, still not believing that Jareth had been in love with her all this time.

"Because he's miserable," Salina replied bluntly with irritation, stepping back from Sarah to walk around her shoulder and face her directly. "He is my friend, my relation, and my king. He deserves to have but one wish granted, wouldn't you agree?"

"His wish…" Sarah uttered almost inaudibly, staring again at the crystal in her hands.

"You know of his wish?" Salina asked carefully, trying her best to not jump to any conclusions as of yet.

"He…" She raised her eyes to meet Salina's amber gaze. "… told me he wished for something he couldn't have."

"And, not once did you think it was you," Salina stated almost accusingly before she laughed in a light titillating manner. "So, now what will you do?" Salina questioned, her tone hinting that she knew more but wouldn't say. "You hold within your hands the raw magic of a fae king who has been more than generous on your behalf. He is the one you owe tribute to, not one such as myself for returning a wayward shawl."

"I'll do nothing," Sarah stated decisively, meeting Salina's gaze directly. "He asked me to hold this, not use it for myself. I'll wait for his return."

"Very well," Salina breathed with boredom, stepping away from Sarah altogether. "Though, it would be a much grander gesture on your part if you returned to him instead," she voiced suggestively over her shoulder as she strode to rejoin Colin near the doors. "After all, he can't grant his own wishes, now can he?"

Sarah stared at the crystal for a few long minutes as people mulled around her, ignoring her as much as she ignored them. She had wanted to know what Jareth wished for, and all the crystal was showing her were images of herself at random times and places. '_It's me_,' she thought with astonishment, though her heart beat in double time at the realization. '_His wish is for me to be with him_.'

With determination she held the crystal level with her eyes. "I wish to fulfill Jareth's wish."

"Well," Salina huffed after Sarah disappeared from the lobby, leaving only a few people to gasp in surprise. "That was much easier than I had expected."

"You sound disappointed," Colin stated in a smooth tone.

"I am," she admitted freely with a pretty pout. "The night is still young, and I have nothing to entertain myself with now that the mortal has gone to join Jareth."

"Her companion still awaits her return," Colin stated whimsically.

"You jest," Salina replied, her eyes alit with interest. "The one she was with before?"

"The very same. He waits in a sleek carriage of luxury outside in the VIP section."

"Oh," she chimed with interest. "I must find him. He was most entertaining last year."

Colin chuckled with mirth as he watch Salina head for the VIP parking lot. '_Poor bastard won't remember a thing,_' Colin thought dryly. '_If he's lucky that is_.'

XxXxX

"Why didn't you tell me that I was your wish?" Sarah accused as soon as she realized she was no longer in the theatre, and stepped forward to approach Jareth from behind.

He spun around to face her, his expression that of shocked astonishment. "Sarah."

"How could you keep coming back, just to leave me again, and again?"

"I want my brother back, right now!" a young feminine voice yelled indignantly from behind Jareth.

Sarah sidestepped to the left with raised brows, craning her neck around Jareth to see a young girl of about twelve with red hair and freckles as Jareth pinched the bridge of his nose. "I did say I was detained by business," he quipped sardonically.

"You have no power over me!" the girl declared angrily with her hands on her hips, and a stomp of her foot. "Now give me back my brother!"

"That only works '_after_' you reach the castle!" Sarah told the little girl shortly, fully stepping around Jareth to grab the girl by her arm. "Now run down this path, and take the door on the right!" she added, shoving the girl in the right direction. The little girl staggered forward, caught herself, then turned around to glare at Sarah angrily. "Don't even think it, missy," Sarah warned in a stern tone, placing her hands on her hips. The girl took a tentative step backwards, then turned, and followed the path like Sarah told her to do.

"You just sent her to the oubliette, you realize," Jareth quipped after the girl ran off.

"All the paths lead to the oubliette, Jareth," Sarah replied a little shortly. "What difference does it make?"

"Were you aware of that while you were here before?" he asked with obvious curiosity.

Sarah realized what she had just said, and raised her hand to look quizzically at the crystal she still held in her palm. "No, I didn't know that until just now."

"I'll take that, if you don't mind," he stated uneasily, eyeing the delicate crystal in her grasp with bated breath. She placed it lightly into his palm with a slightly confused expression, while Jareth sighed with relief once it was in his own hand once more.

"How did it do that? I didn't even make a wish."

Jareth stared intently at the orb with a frown, not fully hearing her question. He moved his hand under it, making it glide over the back of his knuckles, then, from one hand to the other, the whole while frowning at it. "What did you wish for while holding this?" he asked, peering perplexed into the clear orb perched at his fingertips. The magic inside had been altered somehow, but, it wouldn't show him what she had done.

"I… uhm…" He lowered the crystal to meet her uncertain eyes patiently as she took a hesitant step away from him. "I wished to know what you wished for," she admitted cautiously, suddenly unsure of whether that had been a good idea.

"Did you now?" he quipped with curiosity, letting the crystal dissipate into thin air at having his answer. "And, what did you see?"

"I saw images of myself at various times and places," she answered, her heart suddenly feeling like a lump in her throat. "Though, most of them were moments I shared with you."

"That's not the wish that brought you to me, Sarah," he informed her knowledgably, stepping forward. "That's the wish that stirred something within you, something that you've been searching for far too long."

He cupped the sides of her face as she stared up at him in bewilderment, everything around them becoming blurred and distorted. Sarah tore her eyes from his to gaze frantically at their surroundings, noticing how it grew dark as the walls of the labyrinth faded away into a void.

She lurched forward, throwing her arms around him fearfully. "Jareth, what's happening?"

"You once promised to dance with me every day if I so desired it of you," he answered, the darkness around them slowly becoming alit with specks of light. "I've dreamed so many times of a moment such as this." Soft music could be heard playing in the distance, melodic and alluring.

She loosened her arms from around his neck to step back enough to look up at him, placing one hand upon his shoulder, the other gently clasping with his to begin a dance. "Is this a dream?" she asked, falling into step with him as he led her around and around, making her forget her fears.

"Not this time," he answered, gracefully maneuvering her to the flow of music.

Dancing with him was so easy, as it had always been easy. His eyes shone with their natural luster of magic and mysticism as she smiled up at him. Only he existed, and she wondered how she never noticed what was so plain to see. That she loved him as much as he loved her. Her heart soared as he twirled her in his arms, making her dizzy when the world around them seemed to fall away completely, until she realized that they were dancing in empty space.

"Jareth," she addressed in a slightly fearful tone, not missing one step as he led her through the dance. "Where are we?"

"Between the stars," he answered in a silken voice that caressed all her fears away.

"Is this forever?"

He smiled down upon her, and pulled her closer within his embrace. "No," he whispered softly as he dipped his head to hers. "This, is forever." And placed his lips over hers as a shooting star swept the darkness overhead.

The End


End file.
